Oakdale
by Parker Joe
Summary: The continuing story of the residents of Oakdale, Illinois. Carjack-centric, but hope to include all of Oakdale.
1. 1 Day Thirty One

Oakdale-an ordinary town where extraordinary things happen every day.~~Dr. Robert Hughes 9/17/2010

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1. Day Thirty One

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Slowly streaks of morning light appeared through the bedroom window. Filtering through the crisp night air, they chased away the velvety darkness and urged Oakdale to greet a new day.

Jack reluctantly stirred, averse to leaving either his warm bed or the sleeping figure spooned against his chest. Every morning for the last eight weeks had started the same way; since that night at Avalon Castle when the last bridge had been crossed, the last mountain climbed, the last burden laid down.

The night their child had been concieved.

He couldn't help but smile as his hand stole down her body, gently flattening over her hip to rest on her lower abdomen. "Good morning," he mouthed, tenderly pressing a kiss to the back of Carly's shoulder at the same time. Each morning their honeymoon had begun the same way, taking a moment to connect with the tiny being who had already brought them both such joy.

"Talkin' to Junior again?" Carly mumbled, yawning as she covered his hand with hers.

"That predictable?"

"Uh huh." Carly interlaced their fingers, pulling his arm tighter around her. "But it's sweet."

Jack squeezed lightly, savoring the feel of her in his arms. "All I want is to play hooky, in bed, with you," he whispered into her ear.

"We've _done_ that, Detective. Exhibit A," Carly chuckled, patting her stomach with both their hands. "Hate to disappoint-but I have to finish Sage's recital costume today."

"There's a closet full of costumes-"

Carly rolled over and stopped his complaints with a mischevious look. "There is. And I'd much rather be wrapped around you."

"You're torturing me," he protested as her soft, full lips left a trail of kisses down his neck.. "Can I get a raincheck for tonight?" he appealed, before closing his eyes and basking in her attentions.

"You drive a hard bargain, Mr. Snyder," she laughed, sealing her promise with a soft kiss of his lips.

"Only when I have to, Mrs. Snyder." Jack smoothed a lock of hair behind her ear. She glowed. Pregnancy agreed with her. So much so, he'd been surprised no one had guessed their secret on their own. "Speaking of bargains...now that you told Janet and Dusty..."

It came as no surprise to Carly that at the sound of _that_ name, her stomach soured and the first churning wave of naseau struck. As much as she had let go of her issues with _that_ woman-for her children, for the sake of her marriage and even for her sanity-there would always be a knee-jerk reaction where _she_ was concerned.

"Already?" Jack grimaced, watching Carly face turn chalk white as she shut her eyes, pressing her fingers to the bridge of her nose. "Do you want some water?" he asked, twisting around to find see if there was a bottle on her nightstand.

"God, no!" Carly dug her fingernails into his bicep and took a deep breath, counting to ten. Her morning sickness seemed sharper and more tempermental this time around. With Parker, it had never lasted past 10 a.m.; while with Sage avoiding eggs had done the trick. Right now, she was living on Cheerios and saltines until late afternoon, and any swift movement was likely to send her stomach into full launch mode. "You gotta stop treating the bed like a trampoline, G-man," she said weakly.

"Are you sure we shouldn't call Dr. Schiller? This can't be normal. It wasn't this way with Sage. Was it?" he amended quickly, soft-pedaling the fact they hadn't lived together through Sage's pregnancy. "If symptoms need to be monitored, like your blood pressure, she-"

Carly smiled, cupping her hand against his cheek. "Overprotective much?" Red spots flared on his cheekbones, like a child scolded for having their hand in the cookie jar. A surge of emotion ran through her at the concern in his voice. Just a few months ago, jealousy had trickled through her veins at his preoccupation with Janet. Deep in her heart, she hadn't doubted Jack's feelings for her. What boiled her bunny was how unquestioning his support of that witch had been. It was something she had rarely experienced in her life, even with Jack.

And while there were reasons for that, it had still hurt.

"Pre eclampsia is serious, Carly," he insisted. "We-"

"Dr. Schiller is completely aware of my medical history, Jack. I trust her. I know you do too," she asserted with a shaky smile. "In spite of the fact you'll grill her like one of America's Most Wanted at all of my appointments."

"I will not!"

"Oh, sweetheart...you know you will. I found that list of questions-"

"Those were just notes-"

"Jack! It was three pages long."

"It's less than two!" Carly raised her eyebrows skeptically. "Okay...it's more than two," he conceded. "But each and every one of them is pertinent and on point."

"Every one?" Doubt implied with a wide-eyed expression, it took all her concentration not to smile. She enjoyed seeing him so flustered. Whether he was exaggerating to get her mind off the morning sickness or not, it worked. He had a way of knowing just what to do to reassure her. Or in this case, distract her. And she loved him for it.

"Now you're just making fun of me."

Nodding vigourously, Carly smothered a giggle before kissing away any bruises to his ego. "It's damn _sexy _seeing you as nervous as a first time father." Sliding closer, Carly angled herself underneath his hard muscular body. "Very, _very_ sexy," she added huskily. With a heated glance, the mood changed.

The rest of the morning's plans were put on hold.

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In her Lakeview suite, Barbara lifted the cloche from the room service cart to inhale the delightful aroma of french toast. Adding a generous ribbon of syrup to the stack, the first fluffy forkful melted in her mouth. Liberation came in many forms, but this one was particularly delectable.

A few months ago, she would have ordered an egg white omelette, oatmeal or something "whole grain" or "bran". Definitely sensible. Not exactly inspiring. Finding Henry had revitalized her life in so many ways. Like indulging in a sinfully caloric breakfast. Or letting go of BRO. In truth, she hadn't been fulfilled by designing in years. Once her dream had been to run the business with her children. As if she could make up for personal failings with professional success. But Jennifer had died. Will had struck out on his own. She'd held on so long because it was a way to keep Paul in her life. Their relationship being what it was. Contentious. Smothering. Damaged.

"Aren't we particularly gorgeous this morning?" Henry asked, straightening his tie before kissing her cheek and taking his seat. The smell of eggs benedict wafted up as he uncovered his breakfast and immediately began dividing the sides of bacon and potatoes onto Barbara's plate.

She waited, pouring them both cups of coffee as he enjoyed the first few bites. "I know you've got to run off to the diner," Barbara started, "but I want to know what you'd think about revamping Metro. I could sketch some things out, but I'd like to get a consultant and really do this right."

"What's wrong with Metro?" he asked, surprised.

"What's right with it?" she chided. "Don't get me wrong, it's a very nice _little_ club. It has a special place in my heart," she added, reaching over to take his hand. "But conceptually, it's a mess. I don't expect to make a mint, but we want to be profitable, don't we?"

"Of course. I'm sure Dusty has it in good shape. Carly and I managed to make a go of it."

Snorting at the mention of his former business partner's name, she deliberately placed her fork beside her plate before continuing. "I'm talking about maximumizing potential, not scraping by," she sniffed.

Henry sat back, cradling his coffee cup in his hands. Truthfully, while he and Carly had hoped for more, neither of them had had the experience or money to make the club into what they'd envisioned. "I suppose there's no harm in getting some advice," he agreed.

Barbara smiled as he returned to his breakfast. Reaching over, she stopped his fork before it reached his mouth. "Now...I have another question for you. Are you happy here?"

"Here, in this suite? " he asked, snatching a piece of toast with his other hand and biting off a corner. "Or here in the hotel?" he shrugged, waving his toast around the room. "I thought you liked the Lakeview."

"I do too. It's just that-" her voice trailed off as she surveyed the room critically. "It seems so small. When I first moved in. I was alone. No children, no grandchildren. It was supposed to be temporary, until I found something that suited me. But now-I want to entertain again. I want family dinners. When my grandchildren visit, I want make macaroni and cheese. Maybe even bake some cookies."

"Well, hello, Emma Snyder," Henry replied, a bit dumbfounded. "I've never seen you that-"

"Grandmotherly?"

"Domestic," Henry interjected. "I've never pictured you slaving over a hot stove."

"I _wouldn't _say I slaved. I had a housekeeper, Violet Myers. And Hal probably cooked more than I did. His fried chicken was delicious." A warm array of memories came to mind; for a lot of better and some worse, she had loved Hal for a lot of years. He'd been her hero when she desperately needed one. "And he loved making the kids chocolate chip pancakes on the weekends."

"He should have shared some recipes with the prison cafeteria. What they serve isn't fit for man or beast," Henry joked.

"It borders on cruel and unusual," she agreed with a hint of smile.

The mention of Hal made Henry a bit uncomfortable. He and the former Police Chief had never even been friendly, with him being on the left side of many laws back in his misspent youth. It didn't take much to imagine that steady glare boring down on him from The Great Beyond, wondering what his ex-wife was thinking marrying a martini-swilling gambler.

They were all about fresh starts, weren't they? Maybe this was another one. He had to admit, it felt odd to live in the same place he had with Vienna. Sometimes he felt like she was still there, about to pop out from around a corner at any time.

"We're not talking about anything Fairwinds Creepy, are we? No wine cellars, hidden passageways or bodies in rose gardens?

"Definitely not."

"I don't shovel snow."

"I don't either," Barbara observed dryly. "Anything else?"

"I need closet space. And I don't mean sharing a corner of yours. My ties-they need room to breathe."

Barbara nodded with a mock seriousness. "Naturally."

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"Just a moment!" Rosanna hastily ducked into the bathroom to smooth her hair. Pausing at the door, she took a deep breath before opening it and calmly saying, "Good morning, Craig."

He flashed an amused smirk, noting her flushed cheeks and fluttering eyelashes. "_Scusi_, miss..._mi figlio_ and I...we have started a door to door..._how do you say_...muffin shop."

The Italian accent was thick and grossly exaggerated; and utterly ridiculous. And still it brought a smile to her face. Or at least the sight of Johnny did, standing in front of his father, in an odd mish mash of a French beret, loud checkered napkin tied around his neck with a huge basket of muffins in his hands. "Aren't I lucky? I was craving muffins, and here you are. What kind of muffins do we have today?" she asked the young man.

"Um..._lots_?" Johnny answered, looking at the muffins and drawing a blank on anything he'd been told about them.

"Just what I wanted," Rosanna reassured him. "Won't you come in?"

"Yes!" Johnny yelped. Craig clamped down on his shoulder to keep him from running into the room. "Thank you," he added sweetly, looking up for Craig's approval.

"This is quite a scam you've got going, Montgomery."

"It's all about getting in the door," he stated brashly, walking in and seating himself on the couch beside Johnny, who was already helping himself to a muffin. "After that, the quality of the merchandise sells itself."

His lack of subtley was classically Craig. "Are you comparing yourself to mass-produced baked goods? Like Girl Scout Cookies or Flavored Popcorn?"

"I was thinking more along the lines of a handmade Italian silk suit. Superior craftsmanship. A unique luxury item."

"You're an egoistical-"

Craig covered Johnny's ears and mocked, "The refined Ms. Cabot using such language in front of a minor? I'm shocked!"

"I wasn't about to curse. Or say a thing that wasn't true!" Rosanna shot back.

"Let's not quibble about technicalities." He rose, and pulled her back into the corner of the room to speak out of earshot of his young son. His eyes bored into hers. "Games. Pretense. It doesn't suit you. Or us. Admit it. You felt-and still feel- the heat between us. You came back to Oakdale because you still love me. You came back to pick up where we left off."


	2. 2 Inner Voices

Chapter 2: Inner Voices

_Arrogant prick_.

The biting assessment would have shocked Mrs. Lavinia Rierson, the former head mistress of The Rierson School for Girls. After her mother's death, her father, the powerful Alexander Cabot tried to eradicate any individuality his free-spirited daughter possessed. Hence, weekends and summers spent in the stuffy Rierson School, learning to sip tea, carry one's handbag and maintain a suitable reputation until they met "the one". Coarse language was frowned upon, to put it mildly. Somewhere in the suburbs of Grosse Pointe, the elderly lady was scowling in disapproval, though she wouldn't know why.

Then again, she might agree...if she knew Craig Montgomery.

Carly would have laughed. If not at her inner turmoil, at the fact it was her voice Rosanna heard ringing in her ears.

Stay away, Rosebud.

More advice in her sister's vibrant, earthy tones.

Rosanna wondered idly if Carly ever listened to her conscience, or if she'd dismiss it immediately if it came in the guise of Rosanna's voice. The thought of Carly being flummoxed at hearing her innermost thoughts in her sister's clipped articulation brought a scoffing smile to her face.

"See, I knew it. You _want_ me Rosanna. Let's schedule some undercover missionary...work," he finished in her ear, mindful his seven year old son was sitting five feet away. "Johnny's got a playdate this _very_ afternoon."

Snapping back to her current dilemma, Rosanna squinted, wondering if it was lust or love coming out of Craig's mouth. Who was she kidding? She wasn't sure if Craig understood the difference.

She wasn't sure she cared.

In the month since she'd left Oakdale, an overwhelming sense of lonliness had settled over her. As happy as she'd been for Carly and Jack, the envious part of her heart wanted that for herself. And inevitably, she wondered if she would have had it long ago with Mike; if not for Carly.

Rosanna ignored the coarse suggestion. "We had a few drinks. We laughed. I felt compelled to accept your breakfast invitation-for Johnny's sake. It doesn't mean I'm ready for any _charitable acts _with you," she hissed. "I felt comfortable returning to Oakdale, sensing a sliver of maturation in you last month. Obviously, I was mistaken. And, for the record, I do happen to have family in town. Carly made all of us, Molly, Gwen and me, promise to be closer."

Craig snorted. "Carly and Molly? Thick as thieves. Carly and Gwen? Gwen's very young, idealistic and forgiving. You and Carly? Opposite sides of the world suits your relationship to a tee."

"That's a horrible thing to say!"

"Doesn't make it untrue."

"How would you react if I said the same about you and your sisters?" Rosanna spat. "Or are you simply back to your old games? Playing both ends against the middle? They've been married a month!"

"Is that what you truly think of me? That I would -" The blank look on her face told him everything she didn't know. Changing tactics, he asked, "have you spoken to Carly? Does she even know you're in town?"

"No. I intended to call, but I ran into an old _friend_ last night," she reminded him pointedly. "It was a spur of the moment decision to visit. We have not spoken. We traded emails."

"Some great covenant," he said dismissively. "As long as it requires nothing more than hitting the "forward" button, or mangling the English language by interspersing numbers and letters to inform everyone about the "gr_8_" salad they had."

The sarcastic undertone put her on edge. They hadn't been deep, profound dispatches, but she could hardly expect that from Carly, fresh from her honeymoon. "It may not be ideal-but there is a kinship in sharing the minute details of one's day. Doesn't everyone want closer ties with their family?"

"I know you do," he replied. There was a flicker of pity in him _somewhere_, as he waited just one more beat before lowering the boom. "Then why don't you know she's adding to the prolific Snyder family tree?

Rosanna swallowed hard. "I-I didn't know you knew."

The non-denial denial. Someone who spent years trading barbs and fending off verbal bullets might have been fooled. Craig? He knew better. Her flinty smile could have flash frozen Snyder Pond.

In the middle of July.

"Hey, Jack!" Holden pushed through the OPD doors, calling out to his cousin, who waved him over to his desk. Stuffing his hands into his pockets, he waited patiently while Jack finished a phone call.

"What brings you by?" With a goofy grin, Jack rose from his chair and motioned Holden into the interrogation room. When he'd closed the door, he clapped his hands and threw his arms open wide. "Congratuate me! I'm about to be a Dad again!"

Holden rolled his eyes. "I knew that weeks ago. You told me. In the same breath you told me Dusty fathered Janet's baby."

"I know-I know," Jack laughed, wrapping Holden up in a hug anyway. "And I appreciate you keeping it to yourself. Carly wanted to wait, you know, until the end of her first trimester."

"I've been through this a few times myself. I know why women wait, especially after having had a miscarriage."

A momentary shadow came over Jack's face. Carly rarely talked about her miscarriage, and though they'd been through so much together, he respected her privacy. Even with his concerns for her well-being, his thoughts hadn't strayed to the possibility of losing their child. He rejected the notion in his head-as naive as it sounded, given their past and especially the past year-his immediate reasoning was simple. Carly would never allow it to happen.

A bit more soberly, Jack retorted, "We ended up telling Janet and Dusty yesterday. So I assume it's okay to _officially _tell you and the rest of the family now."

"_Janet?_ Jack!" Holden shook his head in disbelief. "I can't imagine that conversation. _Hey Dusty...guess what? I knocked up my wife. Guess we have that in common this year._"

"Uhm...it wasn't like that at all."

"Too busy refereeing a Carly/Janet death cage match?"

"You make us sound like grade schoolers!" Jack protested. "We were all very calm and collected. Adult, even."

"I'm sorry." Holden apologized. "I just know how tense things were. Carly-my God, she hated Janet before. And you're not fond of Dusty. I hate to say it-but I'm glad you don't have to deal with Dusty raising your kid. That guy-_ugh_.." Holden dialed back his own frustration with the man he'd known for half his life. "I'm sorry you were hurt, but it worked out for the best."

"Tell me how you really feel," Jack replied testily.

"That's why I didn't say anything before. It was your business, and you were doing what you needed to do. But now...I'm glad you can move forward. I -" Holden looked down sheepishly and sighed. "I've said too much... How about-"

Jack stretched out his hand, stopping him. "Go ahead. Say it. I know what you're thinking."

"Really?"

"Yep," Jack nodded. "You're thinking Carly's pregnancy is convenient. And that maybe it's not an accident. To get my attention; force some issues."

"Well, I wouldn't have put-"

"The answer is no, Holden. Trust me, if you had seen the look on Carly's face-you would know she was just as surprised as I was. It never crossed my mind it was anything but. It is _evidence_ of a Higher Power. Or some Master Plan. She didn't have to intentionally do anything-she was the one putting on the brakes, not me."

Reassured, Holden let the matter drop. "So, why blurt out the news to Janet of all people?"

Jack shrugged. "It wasn't my call. They stopped by the house to ask me to be Lorenzo's godfather-"

At this point, Holden slapped his forehead. Hard.

"-and Carly told them. I think it was some kind of hormonal reaction to holding the baby."

Holden didn't bother to ask if Jack had agreed to Janet's request. He knew his cousin wouldn't have refused. In spite of their failed marriage, she would always be family for Liberty's sake. And Brad's. "Okay-why don't you and Carly come over to the farm this weekend? We'll grill out, and you can make a big deal out of announcing it to me and Lily."

"Lily, huh?" Jack tilted his head. "Interesting how that just rolls off your tongue, without even calling and checking with her first."

"Newlyweds!" Holden grumbled. "Some of us are happy exactly where we are."

"Okay, okay," Jack replied with a smart alecky grin. "But don't expect Carly to shy away from the subject either."

"Sage-would you _please_ stand still?" Carly asked for the fifth time. Her daughter complied briefly, but long enough for Carly to re-pin the troublesome pleat. "Okay, _carefully_ take it off and bring it back to me so I can finally finish this."

"Okay," Sage said obediently, sensing the end of her mother's patience.

"I don't know why this costume is giving me such a problem. But right now, I'd like to throttle whoever thought up this Bavarian milk maid monstrosity."

Seated next to the fireplace in Milltown, Lily laughed. "Now you know how the rest of us feel."

"No fair making fun of the pregnant lady in the room," Carly responded, slowly rising from her kneeling position and easing onto the couch.

"That has nothing to do with it." Lily closed the magazine she'd been flipping through to occupy her time. "It makes me feel better knowing even the gifted have a difficult time. And by the way, _when_ are you going to spill about your little bundle? If this goes on much longer, Jack's going to catch on that I know. He's constantly at the farm with Holden, grinning from ear to ear. I can play ignorant for only so long."

"Soon," Carly assured her, smoothing her bangs out of her eyes. "Now that Janet knows, we might as well hire a skywriter."

"I still can't _believe_ she had the gall to ask Jack-_after_ everything she's put him through since Brad's death."

"I know. _Believe me_, I agree with you." Carly sighed, and took a sip of her lukewarm tea. "Jack, on the other hand, has always been better at forgiveness."

"Do you think she's happy with Dusty? She sure seemed anxious to have Jack around while she was at the farm. I don't want to stir anything up," she added hastily, seeing Carly pale just a bit. "I barely know her. She talked _a lot_ about wanting to be part of the family, but anytime we got together, she'd spend the majority of her time making those unappetizing meatballs. It got to be a running joke for my kids, finding places to dump them while convincing Janet to make more."

"I wish someone had filled me in _before_ she offered to make them for Molly's shower," Carly scolded, making a face at the memory of the tough, bland nuggets. "I think Janet's as happy as she can ever be," she continued. "Either way, she's not my problem anymore. _Or Jack's._ He's really let all that guilt go." Looking over her shoulder to make sure Sage wasn't within earshot, she confided, "the best thing about my honeymoon? Once we left Janet in the hospital? Hell, about the first month of our marriage? Until yesterday, her name hadn't crossed his lips _once_."

"The best thing?" Lily asked, raising her eyebrows.

"Okay, the _second_..._third _best thing," Carly amended, with an upshot eyebrow. "_Okay_. It's definitely in the top ten. But my point is, it was like she dropped off the planet."

Lily laughed at the obvious glee in Carly's voice. "So why tell her you're pregnant?"

"Oh, I don't know." Carly shook her head. "I held Lorenzo-and I just got all gooey inside. Hormones, I guess."

"Let's have dinner this weekend at the house. You and Jack can surprise us with the news."

Carly was surprised at how easily Lily included Holden in her thoughts, but decided to leave that subject alone. For now. "I bet he called Holden before we left the hospital. He eventually agreed we should wait. But he was ready to burst there and then. When I came back from the pharmacy with my prenatal vitamins, he was definitely calmer."

"He must have," Lily nodded in agreement. "When I walked in on Holden saying something about "another Snyder in the family", he was still in his suit. I asked if Janet had given birth, and he said she had, but that John had run some test behind everyone's back-"

"That reminds me, I _owe_ him a thank you," Carly interrupted.

"-and Dusty was actually the father. Then it snapped into place...Gwen telling me about your nerves; not wanting to eat when you got up that morning; then the look on Holden's face. He swore me to secrecy. If you hadn't run into me at the Baby Botique, picking out a congratulatory gift _for_ you, you wouldn't know I knew."

"Yes," Carly scoffed, "because you're so good at keeping secrets. The trapped look on your face gave you away immediately."

"Wait-you mean you haven't told anyone?"

"Well..._not exactly_. Jack just doesn't know I told anyone. I called Molly when we got back from the honeymoon. She's currently buying out greater L.A.'s baby couture."

"Not Gwen or Rosanna?"

"Gwen's busy with school. Until yesterday, we were going to wait until Thanksgiving anyway. And Rosanna-" A pang of guilt hit her heart. Her sister wanted a child in her life so much. While she would be happy for them, it would also remind her of everything that kept slipping through her fingers.

Lily sensed her unease. "Do you remember what Audrey Samuels used to say? _Every blessed event is both a blessing and an event. _You two are in such a better place now, than when you were pregnant with Sage. She won't have to wonder whether she'll ever be a part of this child's life. It'll bring you even closer."

Nodding, Carly just wondered how many times Rosanna could swallow her dreams and watch someone achieve them. Even if it was her sister. _Especially _her sister.

It was late afternoon when Carly finished the alterations to Sage's costume. Critically eyeing it one last time as Sage twirled, she started putting away her tools. "Now, young lady, hang that up carefully in your room. If I see it on the floor, it will not be pretty."

Sage rolled her eyes. "I'm not a baby anymore, Mom."

It hit Carly that it was true in more ways than one. "You, my sweetheart, will always be my Little Lima Bean."

"Mom!" Sage protested, wrinkling her nose at the rarely used nickname. "Don't call me that!"

Carly sighed. Her little girl was more grown up by the day. "As soon as I'm feeling a little better, we'll have a girls' only day. Whatever you want to do. Shopping, manicure/pedicure, movies...whatever."

"Okay!" She started to leave, but then stopped in the doorway. "Madison's mom takes her to a cooking class."

"You want to learn to cook?" Carly asked in amazement. Uncooperatively, her stomach lurched at the suggestion of food. And somewhat perversely, she imagined being tied down, forced to watch Janet bond with Sage while making mountains of meatballs. The thought Sage missed time with Janet cut her to the quick.

"Well...no. Teri and I had fun last summer. Aunt Emma taught me how to follow recipes. It's just something they _do_." Flushing under her mother's fixed stare, she mumbled "...nevermind."

"Do?" Carly walked over, leaning against the doorway, and gently inched Sage's chin up to look her in the eye. "Is there something you would like to try?"

"I don't know. I suppose with the baby coming, you'll be busy anyway."

"Sage Tenney Snyder...I will never, _ever_ be too busy for you," Carly admonished tenderly.

"Babies take up a lot of time."

"I remember." Carly brushed Sage's hair over her shoulder, recalling how fine her hair had once been. "After you were born, Daddy joked that twenty-four hour shifts and stakeouts were the best training possible for a new parent."

"_That _sounds like something Daddy would say."

"He used to love taking you to the park. Afterward, you would snuggle up on his chest and be out for three _solid _hours. And while he was with you at the park," Carly continued, shushing Sage before she could impatiently question the point of the story, "I was with Parker, taking swimming lessons that summer. So _we_ could have time that was just _us_."

"If you want to have a time every week to hang out with your ol' mom, consider it done. Short of rock-climbing, we can do anything you want."

Sage wrapped her arms around Carly's waist. "But-"

"I won't breathe a word of this to the boys. Not even your dad," Carly assured her. "Us girls need to stick together."

"It's just that Parker always calls me a brat. He says I whine 'til I get what I want."

"Well, I don't think that's true at all. He just likes to tease."

Sage looked up, resting her chin on Carly's shoulder. "Is it going to be a girl? It would sort of be nice."

"It's too early, another month or so maybe before the doctors can tell." Sage's face fell just a little, she clearly wanted to know. But losing her unique position in the house would be unfamiliar territory. Carly recognized the proprietary instinct immediately. "I'll tell you a secret though."

"What?" Sage asked brightly, eager to be in on her mother's latest confidence.

"I am 99 percent sure it's a boy." The boy/girl debate had been the only point of contention during the honeymoon. Jack insisted it was a girl. Carly not only insisted it was a boy, but that he would be the mirror imagine of his father. Jack teasingly started addressing the baby as "Princess", just to start arguments that ended up in bed. Carly caught on _very_ quickly, but wrangled a bet. They would wait until the birth to find out the sex-and whoever was right got to pick the name-no objections allowed.

"Were you right about me?"

"Nope, I was wrong," Carly smiled. "And I was wrong about Parker," she conceded. "But I have a really strong feeling this time." It was hard to explain _how_ she knew. Maybe it was more of a wish, seeing how excited Jack had been when Janet had been carrying "his" son.

Buried in the deepest part of her subconscious, there was another, darker conviction. She had the daughter she was meant to have. The one and only one she would ever have.

"Hey. How about we go pick up pizza for supper? And on the way, we'll stop at _The Cake Connection_ and pick up whatever dessert you want."

"Even a triple chocolate hazelnut cheesecake?"

"Yep!" Elated, Sage took off to her room to change, while Carly phoned in the pizza order, called Parker and Jack and found her spare set of car keys that had been missing for a month. Sage still hadn't come down. "C'mon, Sage, I ordered the pizza for tonight, not next week!" Carly groused.

"Okay, okay," floated downstairs admist a clatter from the upstairs bathroom and feet pounding back to her room.

"I'm leaving in five...four...three..." Carly counted down as she buttoned her coat and twisted the door knob. "TWO..." she called out louder, opening the door.

"_One_. Hello, Carly."


	3. 3 Wash Rinse Repeat

3. Wash. Rinse. Repeat.

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"_Rosanna_?"

The blank look on her sister's face was equal parts confusion, delight, reservation and disbelief. Rosanna squared her shoulders and put on her best smile under the circumstance. "Yes, that's me!" she declared unnecessarily.

"Of course, that's you." After a moment's hesitation, Carly briefly wrapped her arms around the visitor on her doorstep before stepping back to look into the eyes just a shade or two lighter than her own. "Rosanna."

"Marriage agrees with you," she said sincerely. There was no denying that, even to herself. Others saw the classic blonde, blue-eyed, American ideal, or the raw physical come-hither sexuality. Rosanna saw the finer points-the cheekbones, the angle of her chin, the graceful artistic hands. She envied them not because they were "perfect"-but because they were so unmistakably her mother's features. Not that Carly would know that, having refused all the offers Rosanna made over the years to see the photos and home movies.

_Children_ could be so unforgiving, Rosanna thought bitterly.

Driving over here, she came up with excuse after excuse. Craig was simply wrong. What he'd seen-Carly and Lily in the children's store in the mall, laughing over baby outfits-he'd misinterpreted. That she'd _just_ found out; not nearly as long ago as Craig claimed. Or even that Carly was being circumspect in the wake of the Janet debacle (another charming bit of gossip Craig, not Carly, had shared with her...) and delayed telling even her husband about their good fortune. Excluding her sister for the understandable reason of informing the father first.

Or _maybe_ she'd "accidentally" have the doctor's office call and leave a message about an appointment. After which her Detective Husband would track her to and confront her with, until she broke down and admitted the truth.

_That_ was an old trick from her bag of them, Rosanna remembered indignantly. _Surely _that was in the Liar's Hall of Fame by now. Her crafty sister didn't need to rely on old ploys-her gift was in her ability to innovate. New Husband. New Child. New Lie.

If not for Gwen's assurances...Rosanna might have wondered if Carly had spent her last night as a "free" woman in someone else's arms.

Ashamed of that vile thought, Rosanna had vowed to give Carly a chance to explain.

That vaporized with the awkward reception on the Milltown porch. She analyzed every self-conscious movement Carly made: the hesitant embrace, the embarrassed flush, the twitchy hair flip and way she crossed her arms defensively as she stood in the doorway, forgetting to invite her sister in. If you knew Carly well enough, her body language gave her away.

"I had no idea you were coming back to town so soon!" Carly rarely felt tongue-tied, but her sister materializing after her confab with Lily freaked her out. "Is it a business trip?" she asked, unclear about why her normally proper, etiquette-driven sister had simply appeared on her doorstep.

"I missed my family." Mortified at how vulnerable she sounded, Rosanna took a page out of her sister's playbook and concocted. "I _am_ exploring a couple of offers. I lied and told my office it was a personal visit."

"Is that wise? I mean, aren't you under contract? You've barely had that job six months."

"I'm well aware of why and how long I've been in Europe," Rosanna replied frostily.

"Aunt Rosanna!"

Carly breathed a sigh of relief as Sage bound down the stairs, eager to say hello.

"How long are you staying?" Sage asked breathlessly, pulling Rosanna inside, sitting on the arm of the couch while Rosanna sat in the nearby chair.

"I...I don't know," she replied, fluttering her eyelashes at the first prickling of tears. She didn't doubt the affection in her niece's voice for a moment. Or from Parker and JJ for that matter.

"Did Mom tell you?"

"Tell me what?"

Carly paled. "Sage," she interrupted, firmly grasping her shoulders to pull her back-literally and figuratively. "Why don't you get your Aunt's luggage from the car and take it upstairs to the guest room? We'll let her rest a bit while we go get supper. We ordered pizza, but we'd be happy to get you whatever you'd like. Just say the word!"

"That won't be necessary," Rosanna demurred.

"I'm sure I can scare up something better than airplane food," Carly assured her half-heartedly.

"No, I meant my luggage isn't in the car. I dropped it at the Lakeview."

"Really?" A familiar unease settled in her gut. "Sage, could you go upstairs and call your Dad? Ask him what he'd like on his pizza."

"But we already ordered."

"We can add to it if he's in the mood for something else. Please?" she added sternly, making her request non-negotiable. "So...you just pop in town for a visit? Drop off your bags at the Lakeview? Where? At the foot of Craig's bed?" Carly asked as soon as Sage disappeared up the stairs.

"Being happily married, how is that any of your business?"

"Rosanna, are you _insane_? Stay far, _far_ away from him! Haven't your last two go-rounds taught you a damned thing? Did you know he stole Parker's trust? Every last dime, Rosanna. He is an amoral, lying slug who ought to be rotting in prison for the rest of his unnatural life!"

Seething at how nimbly Carly could turn the tables and attack, Rosanna replied acidly, "Yes...Craig filled me in. He risked humiliation in service of making all your dreams come true." The irony was overwhelming. While she hated what Craig had done, all he'd accomplished was driving Carly back into Jack's arms. And now they were living _happily. ever. after._

"Oh, bullshit!" Carly exclaimed.

"Excuse me?"

"You heard me Rosanna! _Bullshit_. It is what it is. Scheming, manipulative and selfish. He wanted back into my life. He _knew_ Jack's marriage was on the rocks and he _knew_-"

"You're obsessed with getting in Jack's bed?"

Carly recoiled at the harshness in her sister's voice. "I was going to say, there was no way I would have _anything_ to with him after his affair _with you_." If Rosanna wanted to play tit-for-tat, Carly had no problem swinging away. "So when I thought I lost another chance with Jack, there he was. Ready to pounce. And it almost cost me _everything. Again_."

"So...when Craig was showering you with all of his worldly possessions, that was okay? It's when he started borrowing from Parker's trust that you developed this moral aversion to him?"

"He _assured _me it was business!"

"And all your outrage over Craig's deviousness melted away? Like that?"

"What's _that_ supposed to mean?"

"That much like Craig, you always have an angle, Carly. You're never as naive as you claim to be-you needed a way to get Jack's attention and _damned_ if one didn't materialize. If it hadn't been Craig, it would have been someone else. There's always _someone_ waiting to pick up the pieces for you!"

For the millionth time, Carly cursed the day she met Craig in Hong Kong. "So-you think I sacrificed Parker's trust to get Jack's attention? After everything Craig did to hide it from me for months-you're _blaming me_?"

"Yes." She caught the way Carly flinched at the word. Instead of feeling justified, Rosanna felt contempt wash over her. She wasn't even sure how this argument blew up the way it did. That was a lie. She envied her sister's life _again_. A year ago, with Carly in rehab, she'd immersed herself in the day-to-day rhythm of raising a family. Each morning facing a new set of challenges; never a dull moment; no two days alike.

She'd never felt that sense of belonging before. At least not since before her mother died. Self-exiled in Germany, she felt the hollowness in her life more each day.

"Get out." Carly stood in the open doorway, a glacial chilliness setting every muscle into a rigid line.

"Carly, I'm sorry..."

"I don't want your apologies, _Rosebud_. I want you to leave. I can't deal with this-or you-right now."

Reluctantly, Rosanna withdrew, stepping out onto porch. "Carly...I-"

"Rosanna, Craig is a leech. He will always _be_ a leech. And when he's done sucking every last drop of blood from you, he'll disappear into the primordial ooze he came from, ready to suck the life out of his next victim. Consider yourself warned."

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Sitting behind her antique walnut desk at WorldWide, Lily glanced at her watch and stuffed one last file into her briefcase before calling it quits.

"I thought I was the only one here on the weekends."

Looking up, she found Dusty leaning against the door jamb. The normally taciturn and scowling "man in black" who roamed WorldWide's halls had been replaced by a beaming man in bluejeans and t-shirt emblazoned with "Proud Papa". "That's quite a fashion statement," Lily needled.

"The kid throws up on everything," Dusty replied. "This is the only thing left in my closet."

"If your grin gets any bigger, your face might break."

"It's been good," Dusty chuckled. "I can't believe he's a month old already."

"It looks good on you, Dusty." Indeed, Lily couldn't remember the last time Dusty had seemed so carefree. Even when they were teens, he had a serious, world-weary air about him. "Why are you working on the weekend?"

"I'm actually glad I ran into you," he replied, taking a seat. "Saves me the trouble of calling you."

"About what?" Since her mother's departure last month, Lily had covered Dusty's C.E.O. duties in the day to day operations.

"I got a hot property I think WorldWide could pick up for a song. Established brand, decent market share, owners motivated to sell."

"This is perfect for WorldWide because...?"

"Because it's right here in Oakdale. Barbara told me last night-she and Paul have dissolved their partnership. B.R.O. is done."

"That's surprising."

"I never thought Paulie would cut the apron strings."

Lily ignored the disparaging remark. Paul and Dusty irritated each other. It was best not to get sucked into the fray. "Do you think this is the right time to expand into the fashion market?"

"I think the potential is there. I know B.R.O. stagnated in recent years, but Barbara's attention was split. She let things slide."

"You seem convinced already. Why run it past me?"

"I need you to finesse me a designer," Dusty bluntly replied.

"How am I supposed to do-" Lily's eyes widened. "You couldn't possibly mean Carly. 'Cause that would just be impossible."

"For me? Sure. Jack would take my head off and throw me out of his house. But _you_..? The worst he'd do is refuse to share his Snyder Cider."

"First, Jack wouldn't stand in Carly's way. But frankly, after the perfume debacle, I'm not sure Carly's up for another business venture. Especially now. I know she's pregnant. I'm surprised you'd want her, given her colorful past."

"Yeah, she told us. I know she's got a reputation. Who doesn't?...but she's never had a stable organization backing her. Between Craig and Paul, it's a wonder she got anything accomplished at all. I need to know if she's interested. And between Jack and Janet, I think she'd be leary of any offer I made. On the other hand, if her good friend Lily comes to her-"

"Oh, no...I've played this game before. With Craig-"

"Don't compare this to whatever deal you had with Craig. Nothing with Craig is ever straightforward. Something you should have remembered, Lil'," Dusty reminded her curtly.

"Why Carly? You could have any designer you wanted. I'm not disparaging Carly here-but like you said, you and Janet have a history with Carly and Jack. This is bound to aggravate all of that."

"'Cause I think she got a raw deal. Getting caught between that bastard Craig and Lucinda, Carly got steamrolled. I'm surprised you haven't tried to make it up to her. Call it a reward for snagging Jack and freeing Janet. Who knows how long that marriage would have limped along if she hadn't come by with her sledgehammer."

"I'm sure you would have thought of something," Lily admonished. "I have thought long and hard about trying to revive our perfume company," Lily shrugged. "Is Carly's participation a dealbreaker?"

"No," Dusty shook his head. "I'm just willing to give her the first crack at it. If she passes, that's her choice. But something tells me she'll jump at it."

"And why's that?"

"Because gamblers let it ride. And Carly's on a roll."

.

.

.

Sooner than expected, there was a rapid succession of knocks on Craig's door. He let it continue, lingering at his desk as he methodically shut down his computer, straightened his desk, checked his calendar for the morning and then carefully removed his jacket and hung it over the wooden valet in his closet.

Another sharp series of raps brought out a thin-lipped smile.

"Damn it, Craig! I know you're in there."

Jerking the door open, he was pushed back a step as Rosanna barreled into the room. "Lovely to see you," he mocked dryly as he closed the door.

"Shut up!" she ordered. "Anyone ever told you you're a bastard?"

"Numerous people on numerous occasions."

"Tell me Johnny's at that play date you mentioned this morning," she said, unbuttoning the cuffs of her silk blouse and pulling it free from the waistband of her skirt.

"Johnny's at his playdate," Craig complied.

"Good". Rosanna wound her arm around his neck, kissing him hard. "So are you."

.

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Ander's strong, muscular hands worked out the last kink, eliciting a gratified purr. Other than her strange stipulation he answer to "Sven", Ms. Walsh was an excellent client. What did he care _what_ she called him as a long as she kept up her weekly appointments and tipped him well.

"I think that's all for today, Sven." Nimbly sitting up, she gathered the sheet around her body. "Doctor Dixon sends his regrets. He'll probably need extra attention next week. His creaky old bones being as they are," she suppositioned with a throaty laugh. "If the old goat complains too much, I may call before that."

"Yes, Ms. Walsh. Call the desk. You have my cellular number as well?"

"Yes, of course."

"I wish you good evening," the massuer stated rather formally, unused to the informal American-isms his co-workers used.

"Good night, Sven," Lucinda replied, closing the door to their Lakeview suite as he exited. Sighing, she leaned against the door contentedly. She considered it silly to keep this comparatively shabby "love nest" when she had a perfectly spectacular twenty room mansion on the other side of town, but John had insisted. It was cozy, Lucinda conceded. At some point, they'd need neutral corners anyway, being the headstrong persons they were.

Having dressed, she debated ordering dinner. That was the one thing she missed dearly-Cook was head and shoulders above whoever the Lakeview employed. Her entire _staff _was.

The muffled sound of her Blackberry chirped from her purse. "Lucinda Walsh," she answered point-blank, not bothering to check the caller ID. Only a select few had this number. Anyone who did had it for a good reason.

"It's Donaldson, ma'am. You wanted to know when-"

"Yes, yes-" she interrupted hastily. "I take it there is some news to report?"

"Yes ma'am. Very good news."

Smiling broadly, Lucinda shook her fist in the air. "Finally!"


	4. 4 The Only Sure Thing About Luck

4. The Only Sure Thing About Luck

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"Pregnant?" Katie Peretti Frazier Frazier Coleman Kasnoff Snyder Snyder soon-to-be Hughes rolled her eyes, her voice sharpening a step in disbelief at the latest gossip. Squatting amid a dozen cardboard boxes in the middle of her new kitchen, she eyed her friend Janet, who was there ostensibly to help her unpack, not chitchat. "Are you kidding me? So...like...a month after Jack isn't a father again...he is? Ugh!" she scoffed. "You gotta give her credit, she sure knows how to yank Jack around."

"You don't think she did it deliberately?" Janet Ciccone Snyder back to Ciccone soon-to-be Donovan asked, shocked by the idea. "I know she's _Carly_," Janet proclaimed, equating the troublesome blonde's name with _liar_. "She couldn't have known Jack wasn't-how things would turn out," the red-head amended quickly, eager to gloss over her _recent_ prickly paternity pickle. The sooner God forgot about that tiny indescretion, the better, as far as she was concerned.

"Oh, _please_. This is the same woman who got Jack to cheat on me two weeks into our marriage. Her ability to take advantage of him _awes_ me."

"Jack looked happy."

"Of course he was. Jack _loves_ kids." Frustrated trying to organize her new kitchen, Katie stood up, fastening her hands to her hips. "Obviously, marrying her wasn't enough, she got some extra insurance."

Janet tilted her head skeptically. She didn't doubt Carly was eager to mark her territory as the new Mrs. Snyder...but then Janet would have expected to have it rubbed in her face somehow. Instead, she'd seemed reluctant to share her good news.

And while maybe it wasn't her business anymore, she wondered why Carly would risk it. Jack had made it clear to her when they first married-no more kids. He had been reluctant when she brought up conceiving to save Libby. And then resigned, when she'd turned up pregnant. She hated to think his disappointment over Lorenzo had opened a door for Carly to play him.

"Trust me. Nothing happens to Carly by accident," Katie assured her friend. Throwing up her hands, she looked over the assortment of pots, pans, spices and kitchenware and snorted angrily. "How stupid was I deciding to move a week before Jacob's birthday? How did Margo fit anything in here?"

"Well, no offense, but your sister's never struck me as the domestic type."

"That's an understatement," Katie agreed, offering Janet a bottle of water from the fridge as she grabbed one for herself. "I thought it was such a good idea," she said between sips. "Now it feels like moving into your mom and dad's house." Shaking her head, she asked, "are you ever going to move out of the Lakeview?"

"We decided to remodel the kitchen. The cabinets are ordered, but it'll be another four weeks until they arrive. And you can't get countertops until those are installed. So that's another four weeks"

"So not before Christmas?"

"No. But it's fun furnishing the house from scratch. Neither of us has anything, really, so we need everything. Dusty hired the best decorator in Chicago. I point at what I like, he writes the check."

"That would work for me," Katie declared.

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"Dad, have you seen the spare camcorder battery?" Parker asked, poking through the kitchen junk drawer.

"That's a good idea, taping Sage's recital. It'll make your mom happy."

He intended to tie JJ down and make him watch it when he came home for Thanksgiving. But if looking like he took the initiative scored brownie points with his parents, bonus. "That would be a relief," Parker deadpanned. "She's been all over me today. Before I was even done pouring the o.j., she went ballistic on me for putting the bottle back in the fridge."

"Maybe she thought she was having a case of deja vu," Jack replied, smiling ironically. "It seems like it's always empty. And yet, always in the fridge." Straightening Parker's tie, he added, "give her a break. She's still dealing with morning sickness."

"Maybe she's just..well, y'know..._crabby_."

"I wouldn't let her hear you say that," Jack cautioned. There was no denying Carly had been irritable and short-tempered since last night. He hadn't even said "I'm home" before Carly was brushing past him, curtly telling him "out!" when he asked where she was going.

"Did you know Aunt Rosanna was in town? Sage said she came over, and she and Mom got into a fight or something."

"Your Mom didn't mention it." Though it would explain some things, Jack thought to himself. "You know Mom...she'll probably call Rosanna tomorrow, and it'll blow over like that."

"I hope so. But I'm not holding my breath."

"Let's GO!" Carly yelled from the living room.

Experienced with _that_ tone of voice, Jack and Parker silently acknowledged the need to quick step out of the kitchen.

"Let's _go_..." Carly repeated, softening her voice a bit as two of the three most important men in her life appeared. They were a handsome pair; Parker in a crisp white shirt and green plaid skinny tie; Jack in his taupe suit with a subtle blue and white striped shirt, open at the throat. It complimented the muted blue-gray tone of her silk dress. Sleeveless in spite of the season, the crossover v-neck banded underneath her breasts, giving it a wrapped effect. It flowed from there, delicately ruffling over her waist. While there wasn't a true "baby bump" to hide yet, it would be comfortable for the next few months.

"Thank you for being on time," she noted, straightening the knot of Parker's tie as he shrugged on his coat.

"Sir, yes sir," Parker barked, mock saluting her.

Carly narrowed her eyes at his teasing, then smoothed his hair out of his eyes. "Try not to look too bored for your sister. She's nervous enough as it is."

"I'm going to capture _every _moment," he promised, flashing the camcorder as he walked out the door.

"Why do I get the feeling that wasn't about brotherly pride?" she asked, while Jack helped her on with her coat.

"Because he's never forgiven you for making that tape of his kindergarten play and then allowing JJ and Sage to see it?" Jack postulated. The video in question showed a pint-sized Parker spending most of his debut twirling around the stage, completely oblivious to his part in the show. Adding to his humiliation, when asked "on camera" afterward what he was doing, he answered perkily "it was so pretty, I wanted to dance." Which JJ and Sage always found so hilarious they collapsed in laughter.

"So even my good parenting comes back to bit me in the ass? Great." The self-criticism plastered a frown on her face again.

Jack sighed as Sage rushed down the stairs and they headed out the door together.

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Chris Hughes wondered the aisles of the _Leaps and Bounds_ store-the premiere toy shop for building brainiac children in Oakdale. _Why? _he grumbled to himself. _Because it's on the approved-by-Katie birthday gift for Jacob list._

And so, that's why he was in the middle of aisle three, perplexed about why a toddler needed _to explore architectural principles...proportion, balance, structure and color_...with a $50 set of colored blocks. Or why they would make him smarter than a simple set of Lincoln Logs.

Being a responsible, conscientious adult, he called his mother.

"My darling. Give Jacob whatever gift you want to give him." Across town, Kim was shaking her head. Personally, she found parents who registered for birthday presents for their children obnoxious, but she held her tongue. Somewhat. "Katie's a first time parent. Jacob will love anything he gets."

After promising his mother he a) wouldn't tire himself out and b) would stop by the house on his way home, he hung up and took his mother's advice. He ditched _Leaps and Bounds_ for the nearest _Foot Locker_, figuring your first birthday was just as good a time as any to become a Chicago Bear fan.

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Having safely shuttled Sage behind stage, and seeing Parker off talking to friends, Jack drew Carly's arm through his. "Let's go outside for a breath of fresh air."

"We just came in from the fresh air," Carly maintained, even as Jack led her out of the _Happy Feet _studio. "What if Sage needs a last minute repair?"

"She'll send up the Bat signal," Jack teased. "Or use a miracle invention called the cell phone."

"Jack!" Carly groused.

"Carly!" Jack mimicked.

Pursing her lips, she fought the impulse to utter some scolding remark. Instead, she allowed him to lead her around the mall, windowshopping. The fresh, invigorating air, and easy pace calmed her nerves somewhat. No doubt that was her husband's plan, but she found herself wrapping her arm around his as they walked.

Stopping in front of the travel agency, Jack asked, "What would you think about taking a family vacation over Christmas break? A week down in Florida? Somewhere warm."

"I'd think about the two kids we've got heading to college next year, " Carly reminded him honestly. "And the fact I'd look horrible in a swimsuit."

"You could _never_ look horrible in a bikini."

"You're an atrocious liar, Jack," she replied, smiling in spite of herself.

"Is that what's worrying you lately? Money being tight? Between college and a new baby?"

"No." Looking into his patiently waiting face, Carly was suddenly too tired to keep it in. "Rosanna showed up yesterday. And she's ruining her life with Craig. _Again_."

"She's not marrying him, I hope?"

"Oh, God," Carly moaned. "I hope not! It's bad enough just _thinking_...damn him! Damn that sonofabitch!"

The outburst caught him and a few passersby by surprise. Jack led her into an alcove, and put his arms around her waist. "I know Craig's _Craig_...but the last I knew, you thought they were good for each other. To the point of begging Rosanna to marry the jerk."

"That was _before_...before that low-life, _vile_, piranha _stole_ from _my_ son! Then nearly let Parker go to jail!" she finished with a crescendo. "I must have been insane to ever think Craig could _change_." Looking at the expression on Jack's face, she added..."and please do _not_ tell me _I told you so_."

"_OOoookay_. How about I tell you Rosanna's an adult, who's going to live her life-"

"That shouldn't _be _her life! She should have a man-a wonderful, caring man! She should be married and have babies and sing them to sleep at night. She should-" Carly's throat constricted, and she threw her hands up in the air, unable to fully express her anguish.

"Are you feeling guilty because you're pregnant?"

Carly swallowed hard. "Maybe," she conceded. "Once upon a time, I ruined my sister's life. And-I didn't care. _I didn't._ That's just the way it was. The way I was." Shame crept into her voice. "I've changed. Or tried to. But Rosanna is stuck in the same place. She gets hung up on a guy, and keeps trying and trying to make it work, long after it's clear there's nothing left. And I wonder if-"

"You ruined her life?" Jack finished.

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.

Peeking out from behind the stage curtain, Sage anxiously surveyed the crowd. Parker was in the far corner, talking to his friends as Faith strolled up. Natalie's parents were in the aisle talking with a group of other parents. But she didn't see hers anywhere. Once again, she felt for the chain around her neck, only to be reminded she'd forgotten her favorite necklace.

"Hey, Sage." Miri, the newest, youngest instructor at _Happy Feet_, smiled at her. "Nervous? You shouldn't be. You'll do fine."

"I know." She tried to sound confident, but caught herself reaching for her necklace again. "I was just hoping to talk to my Mom," she explained, deliberately lowering her arm. "I don't see them. But they're here," she added quickly, seeing a slight frown come over the young woman's face. "Even if Dad got a call, Mom wouldn't leave. And see? My brother's in the corner," pointing out Parker's tall form.

"A call?"

"He's a police officer. A Detective on the Oakdale Police Force."

"Well, maybe I can help."

Sage shook her head. "It's not that important."

Miri noticed the young girl's hand reaching for her throat again, only to stop herself. "Did you lose a necklace?" she asked sympathetically. Giving another shake of her head, the girl turned back to scan the crowd. "I could get your brother," she offered.

"No!" Sage exclaimed quickly. "He'll just make fun of me."

"He's one of _those_ kind of brothers?"

"Well, no," Sage confessed, sensing some disapproval of Parker in general. "He just thinks I'm a baby sometimes. Or chicken. I'm sure JJ thinks so too-he's just too polite to say it. Parker thinks I need to stop being childish."

"He sounds a little arrogant."

"Sometimes. But he's smart too. _Almost_ as smart as he thinks he is."

"But I bet you keep him in line."

Sage smiled. "JJ does too, when he's not at school."

"So he's not in town?"

"No. He goes to Eastlake Academy."

"I can tell you miss him."

"Yeah, but Mom says it's more important that he's happy. And he really does like it there."

"Sounds like you have a very nice family."

"I think so. Most of the time," Sage added, flashing a smile. "There they are!" she said excitedly, seeing her parents enter and point to some seats near where Holden and Lily were sitting.

"Who?" Miri inquired.

"Right there," Sage pointed. "My dad's in the brown suit, with my mom in the gray dress with the ruffle."

"They look very nice tonight."

"Mom designed her own dress," Sage said proudly. "And my costume."

"So, she's talented?"

"You bet!" Stepping out from behind the curtain, she waved at her mother, beckoning her over.

"Okay, I'll let you talk to her." Miri tapped Sage on the shoulder. "But make it quick. Mrs. Lewis will want to see the everyone before the recital starts. Okay?"

"Uh-huh," Sage replied, more focused on Carly's approach than what her instructor was saying.

"Hey, sweetheart, what's up?"

Sage looked up anxiously at her mother. "Do you have my necklace?"

"No, baby, I'm sorry. It must be at home." Carly reached over and caressed her cheek. For her last birthday, Jack had given her a silver star necklace. She'd worn it every day since, and considered it her lucky charm. The only time she took it off was to clean it, and of course, she'd wanted it cleaned for the recital. It was probably still sitting in the cleaning solution on Carly's vanity. "I guess we forgot all about it."

"I wanted to wear it tonight."

"I know. But you don't need it-I know you'll do your best." Looking into a pair of unconvinced eyes, Carly identified with her daughter. She believed in luck, portents, karma. Whatever you wanted to call it. That was probably the best reason to nip this in the bud-too often she'd let coincidence overrule her common sense. "It's important to believe in yourself, Sage. Because of who you _know_ you are, or the hard work you've done."

The strident voice of Mrs. Lewis cut through the low level buzz. "Girls!" she called out, clapping her hands as she bid for their attention.

"Go," Carly encouraged, accepting a kiss on the cheek before Sage ran off.

Parker threw himself into the seat beside Jack. "Is this _ever_ going to start? Is it okay if Faith and I go out for pizza afterward?" he asked in the same breath, not waiting for an answer to the first before asking the second.

"Yes, and Maybe," Jack replied.

"Maybe what?" Carly asked, sitting down next to Jack.

"I want to take Faith out for pizza."

Carly scowled. "Tomorrow's school."

"I'm seventeen, not seven," Parker grumbled.

Jack squeezed Carly's hand. "Home by ten. One minute later..."

"Faith's curfew is nine. And since I don't want to tick Holden off and get Faith in deeper with her parents, you don't have to worry about me. Besides, there's nothing to do in Oakdale after dark anyway."

"I expect you to keep that promise, Parker Joe Munson Snyder," Carly interrupted, more than a little miffed she'd been overruled. Hearing Parker's cell phone spit out a lick from Blondie's _Call Me_, Carly glared at him. "Turn that _off_," she muttered as the lights dimmed.

Rolling his eyes, Parker held it up, and without looking at it, complied.

"Damn it." In his dorm room, JJ ended the call and sent his brother a text. _Call me ASAP_.


	5. 5 No Place Like Home

5. No Place Like Home

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"Parker, _please_."

"_No_, I can't. Even if I wanted to, _which I don't_, you're not ready. See you later, _Squirt_."

And so another morning began in the Snyder household, with Parker slamming out the door and Sage snarling at the nickname she hated.

Sage whipped open the door. "Jerk!" she yelled out after him as he pulled out of the driveway. He tooted the horn; Sage slammed the door in response.

"That's enough, Miss," Carly scolded. It was mornings like this she missed Jack the most-although she was sure Jack didn't miss the typical morning give-and-take irritability between their children.

"Why don't you _make_ him take me to school?"

"Because he's right, you're not ready."

"He's only leaving now because he's going to pick up Faith!" Not waiting for an answer, Sage stomped back upstairs.

Alone, Carly shook her head. _Eighteen more years to go_.

.

.

.

In no time at all, the tires were crunching over the farm's gravel driveway. Walking into the kitchen, he found Holden making himself breakfast.

"Morning, Parker," he said, barely lifting his eyes from the eggs cooking on the stove. "You're here early."

"I promised Faith I'd take her to school." Seeing a hint of a frown emerge, Parker added hastily, "I hope that's okay." Having already been on the receiving end of one father's wrath, he had no intention of being on another's.

"Well...yeah. I just would have thought she'd be waiting for you. Not so behind schedule," Holden explained, taking a second to avoid using the word _sluggish _to describe his daughter's lack of morning initiative.

"Oh...you're _here_," Faith broke in, coming down the kitchen steps. Still in her pajamas and wide velcro curlers, she didn't seem to be in any hurry to start the day, as she popped two slices of bread into the toaster.

"I _said_ I would be." Parker stared at her, annoyed and intrigued at the same time. He didn't want to be late. But there was something really cute about seeing her so unconcerned about her looks. Liberty never let him see her that way. Even after she'd gotten sick.

"Well, I wasn't sure. I didn't get a text back from you this morning. I thought maybe you forgot," she said, staring defiantly at him.

Angry..._check_. Parker patted his pockets for his cell phone. "You did? I didn't get it. I haven't even checked my cell this morning. I was in a hurry," he pointed out, finally finding it in his jacket pocket. "Sage and I got into it," he added, throwing out another distraction to his morning for good measure. Groaning inwardly, he realized it was still off. "Mom made me turn it off last night, and I forgot to turn it back on." A familiar string of notes sounded as the power surged, and he eyed a message in the window-15 missed messages.

"_Oh_..." Faith blushed, realizing there was a perfectly good explanation and he hadn't just been ignoring her. Cringing, she mentally kicked herself for being so insecure. "That's okay," she said rushing by him. "Everyone makes mistakes. Is that _really_ the time? I'll be ready in five minutes. Old lady Pratt already has it out for me," she yelled as she ran up the stairs.

Holden shook his head at the exchange, sliding his eggs onto a plate and appropriating the toast Faith had left behind. "I appreciate you taking Faith to school, Parker," he said slowly. "As long as we're clear on some things, that is."

"Like?"

"Like going straight to school, being on time and driving responsibly. Which includes _not_ letting Faith drive without a license like you did the other day. And no driving around with a carload of friends."

"They sound a lot like Mom and Dad's rules."

"I'm sure they do. I just want my expectations to be clear."

"Understood." Parker cleared his throat. "I know you know a lot about my relationship with Libby," he started. "But I think I've grown up a lot-"

"Parker-I have no doubt you have. And I know there were a lot of other things going on in your life at the time," Holden assured him. "Faith-she's trying very hard to be grown up. And she's had a crush on you since she was twelve. She's more sensitive than she'll admit."

"I know." Faith was really a lot like his mother that way, but that was the last thing he wanted to admit or bring up to Holden. _That_ history was much better forgotten. "Faith and I are friends. I mean, we're more than that. But not-" he stammered hastily.

Holden buttered his toast slowly, hiding a smile as Parker became more and more tongue-tied. Just before he started to turn green, Holden stopped him. "I didn't mean to put you on the spot. This is your senior year. It should be special. Just make sure it's for the right reasons, okay?"

"I'm looking forward to a lot less Drama this year." Parker laughed nervously.

"Let's hope," Holden agreed. Satisfied his point was clear, he ambled with his plate over to the table and sat down. "How's Jack seem to you?" he asked, sipping coffee from his oversized cup.

Parker shrugged. "Happy." Unsure if he should elaborate, he simply fell silent.

"It's been a long time since I've seen him this happy. Your mom-being with you kids-it shows." he nodded. "It's just as we get closer to the the end of the month-" Something in Parker's expression confirmed he shared an uneasiness about the anniversary of Brad's death and the effect it would have. "I'm sure your Dad will handle it," Holden backtracked. "He's got your Mom in his corner."

.

.

.

"Barbara."

The new Mrs. Coleman beamed at the sight of her former stepson and son-in-law. Inviting him to sit across from her in the Lakeview dining room, she couldn't help but notice the resemblance to his late father Gunnar. Fatherhood had brought a noticeable new dimension to him. Not that he hadn't considered Johnny his son. But there had always been a defensiveness about it, knowing Craig had rights to him as well. Perhaps it was as simple as knowing there was another living person who shared his DNA. For a man who'd lived most of his life without blood relatives, it had to give him a sense of connection he'd never known. "So, _Dustin_, what can I do for you?"

Amused at the use of his proper first name, which few outside of the police bothered to utilize, he joined her, ordering a large cup of coffee from a passing waiter. "I wanted to thank you for the present you sent Lorenzo. I know Janet was impressed by your generosity. Me too."

"You're welcome. It must have been quite a surprise, finding out you'd fathered Janet's child. Though I am a little disappointed I heard the news from John and not you," she added with a sniff.

"He was passing out cigars to everyone in the hospital before I could wrap my head around it," Dusty smirked innocently. "I would have gotten around to you eventually."

Barbara cocked an eyebrow at his puckish tease. "Make sure your-_Janet_-knows that blanket _is _cashmere. You don't just throw it into the wash," she admonished. "Like the rest of her shabby-not-chic wardrobe."

"I'll pass that along," he replied, grinning through her catty remarks. For Barbara, they were soft lobs of disapproval, meant to remind him no one would ever measure up to Jennifer. He understood. Moving on hadn't meant he'd forgotten. Just that he'd embraced life again-just as she had with her new marriage. "Where's Henry?" he asked, trying to keep any trace of sarcasm out of his voice. Other than the fact it had to drive Paul crazy, he didn't have much use for Henry Coleman.

"At the diner, hiring a new manager," she replied, taking a sip of orange juice.

"I thought maybe he'd sell it, now that you bought Metro."

"No," she shook her head. "He's very proud of his accomplishments there. He won't be as hands on, but he wants to keep it."

Dusty sat back in his chair. "I like to be as hands on as I can get."

"I'm sure Janet approves," Barbara snidely remarked.

"I've been thinking about getting WorldWide back into the rag trade," Dusty elaborated, ignoring the cynical undertone. "If you'd be inclined to sell to me."

Barbara leaned forward, marveling at his audaciousness with a fixed glare. "I would rather chew off my right arm than sell to Lucinda! And none of your charm or compliments are going to change that!"

Shrugging, he met her hostility calmly. "Lucinda's no longer involved in the day to day operations. It hasn't been announced to the stockholders yet, but the long and short of it is-Lily forced her out. And rather than fight it, Lucinda's decided to enjoy a new phase of her life."

"I realized she and John had been together a lot," Barbara admitted, a little stunned at the news. "There must be a hell of a story behind Lily finally putting Lucinda in her place," she observed, hoping for some of the juicier details.

"Just a little family squabble," Dusty replied with mock discretion.

"Is this a new toy for Lily to play with? The stockholders aren't going to be happy about that. I heard rumors of some factory that didn't exist? No one's going to take her seriously."

"I take her seriously. That's all that matters. And no, it's not Lily's idea. It's mine. Although I would like her to play a significant role in the new division."

"Finding just the right designer could take quite a while."

"I've got a couple of feelers out."

"So you've thought this out," Barbara stated.

"I'd love to keep you involved. Consulting. Mentoring whoever I bring in."

"Henry and I are going to be busy remodeling the club. Buying a house. I can't see myself having the time."

"Keep an open mind," he asked, rising. "Assuming you'd sell to WorldWide."

Barbara examined him, narrowing her eyes to look him up and down. "You're not fooling me-trying to sweeten me up to get a better price."

"I never flatter. Unless I can use it to my advantage," he smiled.

"Send me your best offer. I'll tell Tom to hold off on announcing the sale."

"Thank you." Dusty started to leave, then stopped and kissed her cheek. "Stop by-see Lorenzo. Grandma."

Touched, she patted his cheek. "I'd like that."

.

.

.

Having passed through the security check, Carly breezed through the halls of the Oakdale Police Department, waving to faces she'd seen for years. As she came to the double doors of the squad room, she spotted Jack at his desk. Pensive. Focused.

Sexy.

Deciding to surprise him, she fluffed her hair, and tip-toed inside. With his eyes glued to the desk, he made no acknowledgment of seeing her or being affected by the low-level buzz going on around him.

Officer Martinez nearly called out a greeting to Carly, but she stopped him with a finger to her lips. Pointing at Jack, she beckoned Martinez to come along with her. They stood in front of his desk for ten seconds, grinning at each other at Jack's complete preoccupation. In another ten seconds, the squad room froze with them, amused at being in on the joke before them.

At the forty five second mark, Carly motioned to Martinez. "Detective!" he exclaimed in a rattling baritone.

"What?" Jack retorted, annoyed at the interruption, only to look up and see Carly and a handful of people looking at him and busting into an assortment of giggles and guffaws.

"Someone here to see you," Martinez cracked before continuing on his way.

Thrown, he straightened the mess of files on his desk, fidgeting and shifting the objects on it until he was satisfied. "What brings you by?" he asked when he was finally composed.

"Nothin' much," Carly replied, grabbing the edge of the desk and leaning forward playfully. "Handsome."

"Have I told you today how beautiful you are?"

"You better have," she teased, leaning in further to tickle the tip of his nose with her own. "I remember you mumbling something before you left for work. But that could have been anything."

"That was _I love you_. This is _you're more beautiful today than the day I met you in Montana_."

"That's better."

The husky tone of her voice told him all was forgiven, and he lightly brushed his lips over hers before straightening up. "To what do I owe the pleasure?"

"I thought I'd take my handsome husband to lunch."

"Will I do?"

"Yep!" she exclaimed without hesitation. "Can you go now?"

Jack shrugged. "It's been a slow morning. Sure." Grabbing his coat, they stopped to inform the desk sargeant, and walked out into the bright fall sunshine. "Where would you like to go?" he asked, digging into his pocket for his car keys.

"Let's just walk down to Al's," Carly suggested, holding out her hand.

Wordlessly agreeing, he grasped her hand and they fell into an easy pace, heading two blocks north to the diner. "So, what did I miss this morning?"

"Just short of World War Three," she joked. "Sage wanted Parker to take her to school. And of course-"

"-that's the last thing her brother wants-his little sister tagging along when he picks up Faith."

"She's at that age. And I think she's a little upset she made that mistake at her recital last night."

"She's too hard on herself. She missed a cue. No one even noticed."

"She knows. That's all that matters." Carly sighed. "Sometimes I think she got the worst combination of our genes. She forgot her necklace, and I told her she didn't need it. Now she'll probably never take it off again."

"Sage will shake it off-just wait and see," Jack assured her. "Nothing keeps a Snyder down for long."

Carly bit her tongue, refusing to take the bait and remind him of the Snyder brooding gene. "I hope so." They crossed the street, and Jack held the door for her as they entered Al's. "_Yuuuummmm_..." she declared, inhaling a jumble of delicious aromas. "I'm starving!"

Grimacing, Jack stopped, pulling Carly back to him. "Maybe we should take it to go? I know how smells aggravate your morning sickness."

"Oh." Carly's eyes lit up, and she patted his chest soothingly. "That's the other news. After both our children slammed out of the house, and I wondered why any adult willingly subjects themselves to all the petty little squabbles...I realized I was hungry. _And_ I wasn't sick as a dog."

"Congratulations," he said, nuzzling her ear.

"Oh, G-man...I can't tell you how delicious everything tasted. It was like those people on _Survivor_, who literally dissolve into a quivering heap when offered a huge, greasy slice of pizza. Or huge chocolate chip cookies."

"Really?"

He was mocking her, a huge amused grin on his face. "Make fun of me all you want, Jack Snyder. I plan to eat for two for the next seven months."

"I will gladly trek through raging blizzards to bring you pints of Rocky Road ice cream," he vowed.

"I am _so_ going to remember that particular promise."

With the lunch crowd thinning out, they took a corner booth, hoping for a little more privacy. "Today's special...home made chicken soup and barbecued pork sandwiches," Jack read off the card on the table.

"Oh, no...I already know what I want. A bacon cheeseburger, with swiss cheese, no onion, extra tomato and pickles; curly fries, and a turtle brownie with hot fudge sauce."

"That actually sounds really good," Jack conceded.

"It does," came from the table next to them. Lowering a menu from in front of his face, Chris Hughes slid from his seat two tables over into the seat across from Carly. "You have to help me," he pleaded.


	6. 6 Tofu And Other Misfortunes

6. Tofu and Other Misfortunes

.

.

.

"Help? How?" Carly stared at the young Doctor Hughes as he shushed her, nervously darting his eyes around the diner. The paranoia grew contagious and Carly started looking over her shoulder as well. "Are you alright?" she asked, seeing only a few other diners absorbed in their own pursuits.

"Tofu," he muttered, screening himself behind the menu again when he saw the waitress head in their direction.

"Excuse me?" Jack said, not understanding.

Their waitress arrived. "Hey ya, Jack. Can I take your order?"

Jack recognized the girl-Wanda-from when he'd been married to Janet. And from the subtle way she'd ignored his current wife, his guess was she and Janet were friendly. "Sure. I'll have-"

"Can we have another minute?" Carly interrupted, her icy smile attesting to the fact she didn't like the snub.

"Of course," the waitress replied. "Have you decided yet, Doctor Hughes?" she asked.

"No...not yet."

Shrugging, she walked back behind the counter and took a tub of dirty dishes back into the kitchen.

"Thanks!" Talking out of the side of his mouth, he continued pretending to study the menu. "Could you order me a bacon cheeseburger? And fries?"

Jack rolled his eyes. "Order your own lunch," he curtly suggested.

"I can't!"

Jack's eyebrows shot up. Sensing his annoyance, Carly laid her hand in his, stopping him from badgering Chris into an explanation. "_Why _can't you order lunch?"

"Katie won't let me."

Curling her lip, Carly reluctantly searched the diner for the tiny blonde harpy. "Where is she? The bathroom?" Carly asked, not seeing the former Mrs. Jack Snyder. True, she was now the Widow Snyder, but deep in her heart, Carly would always remember the lengths to which her former friend had gone to to destroy her life. It didn't matter that everything had worked out; Carly would never be that unguarded around Katie again. Never.

"She's not _here_. She doesn't need to be. She has eyes and ears everywhere-"

"Are you on any kind of medication, Chris?" Jack asked bluntly, having heard plenty of addicts ramble the same way during the years on the force. "Maybe we should call your doctor. Tom and Margo. Get you to the emergency room."

"I'm perfectly fine," Chris insisted, giving Jack a blank look. "Tofurkey," he blurted. "Last night, we're having dinner, and that's what she made. Who in their right mind thinks that's edible? Morning, noon, night-that's all we have. Tofu breakfast scramble. Smoothies. Turkey. _Hotdogs_...honestly, how can anyone enjoy _that_?" he pleaded. "No matter how much ketchup, mustard, relish-that taste. ICK."

Carly smothered a laugh. He sounded exactly like Parker or Sage facing down broccoli.

"You're acting like an idiot because you don't like Katie's cooking?" Jack asked, pissed. "Pick up the phone. Order pizza."

"Now, Jack-"

"She knows everyone. She's told them not to deliver to the house. You know what Katie's like. I wake up in the middle of the night, sneak into the kitchen, and find nothing but little notes telling me it's now a Junk Food Free Zone. It's not _natural_."

"Really?" Jack asked, stone-faced.

"I lied to my fiancee, told her I was picking up something for Jake's birthday. Instead I'm sitting here, salivating at the smell of french fries. I had to wait until Henry left, because he'd be on the phone to Katie the minute I stepped in here. But the girl-it's like I'm on a wanted poster or something. She _knows_ not to give me a hamburger."

Carly's urge to laugh at a typical Katie overkill situation died as she watched Jack's face turn ashen.

Scowling, Jack rose abruptly, the chair shrilly scraping across the floor. "I have to get back to the station, " he said, stalking out the entrance without as much as a kiss goodbye.

"Did I say something?" Chris asked, at a loss for the swift exit, his dining dilemma momentarily backburnered. "Is he always so moody?"

"Cancel our order," Carly shouted out, forgetting they'd never gotten around to ordering anything as she slid into her jacket and flipped her hair free of the collar. "Do yourself a favor, Chris. Grow a set. It's the only way to keep Katie from walking all over you."

Dashing out the door, she had to run a block and a half to catch up to her husband. "Jack, stop!" she finally called out. "What do you think you're doing?" she asked, panting.

"Chris Hughes is a-_a moron_!" His face was a mottled, angry red as his hands sliced through air. "Did you listen to him? He's complaining because Katie's concerned about him. Weening him off late night junk food binges! The idiot would probably drown in Cheetos if left on his own."

"Somehow I doubt that," Carly replied drolly. "Maybe beer, but a mountain of Cheetos would leave air pockets." The only reaction from Jack was a clenched jaw. "Fine...he's a moron incapable of fighting his way out of a junk food jungle. That make you feel better?"

"Why are you defending that bonehead? Isn't this the same kid who was sleeping with Molly _and_ dating Abi? And then declared to a churchful of people he was in love with Emily while at the altar _to marry her sister_?"

"I can't keep track of all of Molly's dating blunders. Holding a grudge against all of them would be a 24/7/365 day a year job. Besides," she reminded him pointedly, "who hasn't walked out of a wedding or three in this town? Better to walk out than marry someone you don't love? Right?"

"Are you throwing Janet in my face? Or Katie?"

That remark snapped Carly's patience. "I don't know _Jack_...there are so many to choose from. I think I'm being _incredibly_ understanding, considering I'm hungry, pregnant _and_ newly wed to someone who's dangerously close to acting like it's his business who's stumbling around Katie's kitchen at two in the morning!"

"Her _fiancee_," he bristled. "You know damn well I love you! But forgive me. I'm a little concerned that once again, Katie is _moving on_ to the first guy that comes along! She was going to run off with Simon! Now she's living with this jerkwad?"

"What else is new?" Carly huffed. "She's made a science out of it. Simon to Mike; you and Brad and back again. Throw Henry into the mix and it's her own personal merry-go-'round. Emphasis on the _merry_."

A well-timed ring from Jack's cell phone interrupted them. "Snyder!" he barked. Listening, he rubbed his forehead; his face taking on a detached air. "I understand." Calmly snapping his phone shut, he grabbed Carly's hand. "C'mon," he said, checking the crosswalk before leading her across the street. "We've got to go."

"Jack Snyder!" she protested, finally pulling her hand free as they headed into the OPD's parking lot. "We're not finished talking about this," she warned, thinking the intent was to pack her off in her car while he went back to work.

"That was Eastlake. JJ's been expelled."

.

.

.

"Pepperoni or sausage?" Parker asked. Standing in line at _Subs and Slices_, he looked at Faith, unsure of what she preferred for lunch.

"Pepperoni," she answered, delighted at his manners as he balanced slices, breadsticks, sodas and two mint chocolate chip cookies while guiding them through the throng of teenagers to seats in the back. "Thank you," she said as they sat down. "I'm starving. I didn't eat breakfast."

"You had plenty of time," he reminded her. "If you hadn't spent the morning texting me anyway."

"I didn't."

"Okay. Whatever you say."

He was smiling, so Faith knew he was gently teasing her. "I don't know how long it takes you to type, but it doesn't take me _all_ morning to send three texts."

"Three? Try twenty."

"I did _not_!" she insisted in between bites.

"Oh, _really_?" Pulling out his phone, he scrolled through his messages, reading them back to her: _Parker r u there? Parker txt me if u r still picking me up. Parker, Al's b4fs?_ Al's Before what?"

"My thumb got in the way. It was supposed to be _Al's for breakfast_?"

"Oh, okay," Parker agreed. "That's just between 6:30 and 7 a.m." he continued. _Parker call ASAP_ At 5:58 a.m. I didn't even know you got up that early," he said, disbelieving yet impressed.

"That's not me."

"It's right here," he teased, waving it under her nose to prove his point.

"That's from JJ _last night_," she said, looking closely. "I sleep through my alarm, and that's set for 6:15," she assured him. "No way I'm texting before 6 a.m., dude."

"JJ? Oh _crap_," he muttered, yanking the phone back to scroll through the texts. "Man, they're _all_ from him." Dialing his brother's number, he got voicemail on the first ring. "Man, I'm sorry. Call me back." Shoving his phone into his pocket, he tore a breadstick in two.

"You think it's bad, don't you?" Faith asked, noting the change in attitude.

"Yeah, I do. JJ never asks for help."

.

.

.

Left alone, Chris sulked in his seat. "This sucks," he muttered to himself. "Carly's right, give Katie an inch, and she'll take eternity." Motioning to the waitress, he returned the menu. "I'll have a bacon cheeseburger. Hold the onions."

"Dr. Hughes-"

"Please," he firmly asked.

Shrugging her shoulders, Wanda wrote the order down on her pad and left.

_It was delicious_. From the lightly toasted bun, to the crisp bacon to the sour bite of pickle-it was _perfection_. He savored every morsel, restraining himself from licking his fingers when he was done. But in the spirit of compromise, he ate exactly two of the fries that came on his plate.

"There you are!"

Chris' head snapped up. "Andy!"

"Hey, little brother!"

"What are you doing back in town, bro?" he asked, rising and slapping his brother on the back as they hugged. "The last I heard, you were off snapping pics of flooding in Pakistan."

"And then the wildfires in Russia."

"Never a dull moment, huh?"

"You're no slouch. Fatal disease. Heart transplant," Andy retorted. "Just forgot to mention it to anyone?"

"Yeah," Chris admitted sheepishly. "I was kind of stupid thinking I could handle it on my own."

"Kind of?"

"Okay, okay..._very_ stupid. But I didn't want to worry Mom. I thought I'd licked it once."

"She give you one of her _kiddo_ speeches yet?"

"About three days after the surgery. You should have seen how mad she was," Chris told him. "If she could have, she probably would have taken me out to the woodshed."

"Lucky for you. I still feel like kicking your ass."

Grinning, Chris put up his fists, defending himself like a boxer. As they sat down, Andy immediately snatched some fries off his plate and dipped them in ketchup. "So, how long are you back for?"

"A while. A good long while," Andy replied. "You know my dad's back in town."

"Best cardiologist I know."

"Well, he's here. I thought I'd come see my brother and his new heart. And Oakdale's a good place for Hope. Denise got the opportunity to tour with her dance company for six months in Europe. I thought it would be a good idea to spend some time with my daughter before she takes off for college."

"That's got to be tough, hitting a new school your senior year."

Andy shook his head. "They'd just moved to San Franscisco when Denise got the call. I think Hope would prefer to go back to Houston, but that wouldn't work for me."

"Mom is going to love this. You and me. Hope and Jake."

"Jake?"

"That's Katie's son Jacob."

"Oh...Katie? Katie _Peretti_?"

"Yeah, Katie. I asked her to marry me. We moved into Tom and Margo's house. Jake's going to be one in a couple of days. Hopefully soon he'll have a brother or sister to fight with."

Andy looked at him in surprise. "It's going to take me a while to digest all of that. My little brother. Married. Father."

"Jake is just the best kid. He so calm. Katie is running all over the house, bubble wrapping table corners because he's learning to walk. He simply motors over to the couch, pulls himself up and practices over there. It's like he knows how protective she is, and he's saying, "okay, mom, we'll do it your way for now." She's a great mom." Something clicked in his head, and he looked at the plate his hamburger had come on guiltily. "Overprotective, but great. You heard what happened to her husband, Brad Snyder? Did you know him?"

"Mom mentioned it. Brad? Yeah, I knew him. Not all that well, but at one point when I was dating Molly we crossed paths. He was all about Camille Bennett at that time. And blowing up Carly Tenney's life."

"It's Carly Snyder again. She and Jack were just in here. I don't think Jack likes me," he confided.

"Why would that be a problem?"

"I'm not sure it's a problem. But he is Jake's uncle. I want us all to get along."

"Good luck. I'm not sure much changes any Snyder's mind."

.

.

.

"Thanks, Mrs. Wallace!" Sage waved, smiling brightly as her friend Sydney's mother dropped them off at dance class. It had been a surprise to see her outside the school, motioning to her as Sage waited for her mother to pick her up. Checking her cell phone, there was a text about having to straighten out something at JJ's school, so Sage piled into the Wallace's van.

As she and Sydney chatted away along with the younger Wallace children, a thought came into her head.

So, as the Wallace van pulled out of the parking lot, Sage pulled Sydney aside. "Tell Mrs. Lewis I couldn't come today."

"But you're right here," Syd pointed out.

"She hasn't seen me yet. Please? I've got something I've got to do."

"Like what?" Syd said skeptically. Sage was one of her best friends; she could tell something was spinning inside her head. The last time she'd seen that look, Sage had entered that dorky Little Miss Snowflake contest. The snooty girls at school had teased her for months.

"Go to my Aunt Emma's."

"You can do that anytime."

"But it has to be today," Sage persisted. "Please? I'll explain why later. I have to go now." Not giving Sydney a chance to protest further, she took off.

"You owe me Sage!"

Waving off the rebuke, Sage made one stop, and then headed behind the mall, taking the shortest path home to get her bike.

"Sage, where are you going? Class started five minutes ago."

Surprised, Sage barely recognized her instructor Miri with her hair down and in jeans and a denim jacket. "I'm not feeling well. I'm heading home."

"Why aren't you waiting for your mother?"

"She's busy," Sage stalled. "Besides my dad says fresh air is good for a headache."

"Let me give you a ride home," Miri suggested.

Weighing her options, Sage shrugged her shoulders. "Okay. Thanks."

Seated in the slightly beat up car, Sage directed Miri out of the mall and out of Oakdale proper to Milltown. "My house is on Elm Street. At the end of the block."

"It looks like a pretty neighborhood. Have you lived here long?"

"Sure. Ever since I was born. Except for when I lived with my dad at the farm. But it's still Oakdale. Kind of," Sage sighed. "The most boring town in the United States."

"I doubt that," Miri laughed.

"Where are you from?" Sage asked.

"A lot of places. I was born in Springfield. Not that I remember it. We moved around a lot. Kansas City, Missouri, not Kansas. Boise. Portland,Oregon, not Maine. Brownwood Texas. Nice town..."

"Terrible name," Sage finished, wrinkling her nose. "Why move here?"

"It's close to Chicago. Less expensive to live here," Miri replied. "Nice people."

"I guess I don't notice. It seems like I'm related to half the town. They have to be nice to me. This is my street," Sage pointed out.

Miri pulled into their driveway and shut off her car. "It's a really nice house. How many brothers do you have again?"

"Two," Sage answered. "Thanks for the lift." Unbuckling her seat belt, Sage reached for the door handle.

"Why don't you tell me why you're really skipping ballet class," Miri said, grabbing Sage's wrist.


	7. 7 Game Changers

7. Game Changer

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"It's really none of your business," was Sage's fuming reply. Adding a glare she hoped looked half as scary as one of her mother's, she pointedly stared from the hand on her wrist to Miri and back again.

Slowly, Miri took her hand away. "I think we both know you're not sick. I don't know any parents who like not knowing where their kids are." Squinting her eyes, she added, "And I don't think you make a habit of disobeying your parents' rules."

Sage pursed her lips, unswayed.

"I hoped we were friends." Sighing, Miri sat upright and laid her thumb on the flat surface of her key. "Whatever you're up to Sage, please be careful. I'd miss seeing you in class."

"Are you going to call my parents?"

"Is that what you would do, if you were me?"

Sage thought for a minute, not knowing any adult who wouldn't narc out a kid if they thought it concerned their safety. And her parents had impressed the importance of always letting someone know where you were going-at all times. "If you promise not to tell anyone, I'll tell you why I skipped class today."

Smiling, Miri sat back in her seat. "Okay, what's the big secret?"

"I want to go to the pond and look for something my mom lost."

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.

A soft rap on Dusty's door at WorldWide preceeded Lily's arrival. "I'm not required to call you "boss", am I? And before you answer that, remember, I have incriminating photos."

"How long are you going to hold that Members Only jacket over my head?" he laughed.

"As long as I can." Smirking that he'd been "coaxed", Lily took the seat across from his. "What did you want to see me about?"

"I talked to Barbara at breakfast. Legal is writing up the offer for BRO as we speak. I'll have it messengered over to Tom by end of business today."

"I will feel out Carly tonight-see if I can interest her in the possibility of resurrecting her design career yet again," Lily promised.

"I don't think you're going to have push too hard."

"It may be harder than you think. She was literally _burned ut_ of one business this year, and a large part of the other one didn't exist," Lily moaned recalling the spectacular failure her own mother had engineered.

"People bounce back," Dusty affirmed. "Silver platters have a way of doing that."

Lily let the comment pass. Dusty didn't need to know she knew of the pregnancy or that he knew. She secretly hoped Carly leapt at the chance, even with the timing. Juggling a new marriage and a new job would have been difficult enough. Adding another child to the mix might be one thing too many. Even for Carly.

"While I'm thinking of it-have you read the Greene Manufactoring report? It's underperforming."

"I know," Dusty agreed, rifling through the papers stacked on his desk.

"However, there is something interesting. Guess what asset they're trying to unload?"

"Not a clue," Dusty replied.

Coming around to his side of the desk, she leaned over his shoulder and flipped through the report. "Right there," she said, pointing at a line on page twenty-one.

"Is that what I think it is? _Where_ I think it is?"

His face was only an inch from hers. So close she suddenly remembered the first time she'd noticed how blue his eyes were. Back a million years ago when they were teens. Lily dropped her voice a half step. "Unless they've rearranged the streets in Oakdale, I think so. Their warehouse for sale is right across from BRO. Barbara tried for years to buy it and expand."

"Now it's just sitting there," Dusty said, almost reverently. Good luck like that didn't drop into his lap everyday.

"What's this?" With a rapidly melting smile, Janet stood in the doorway with Dusty's apologetic secretary behind her. They certainly looked cozy, and from where she stood, he looked like he was enjoying it. They _both_ looked like they did.

"I'm sorry Mr. Donovan, Ms. Ciccone wouldn't wait to be announced."

"That's alright, Beverly," Dusty replied, dismissing her. "What brings you buy? Where's my boy?"

"At the Lakeview with his Aunt Teri."

The arctic reply raised goosepimples on Lily's forearm as she stood up and took a step back from Dusty's chair. "Nice to see you Janet."

The clearly displeased Ms. Ciccone flared her nostrils. "Lily." Slightly bitter, the silence carried on for a few beats as Janet raised her eyebrow to Dusty, clearly expecting him to cue Lily out of his office.

Checking her watch, Lily delivered her own exit. "Dusty, if you'll excuse me, I have a conference call starting in a few minutes. Janet," she added politely, walking out the door.

Turning on her heel, Janet fingered her St. Christopher medal as she watch Lily take her skinny ass out of the room. "Is that how you spend all your days?" she goaded.

"How's that?"

"With _bel nientes_ draped all over you."

"I can see my Italian's going to get a workout," Dusty smirked, sure it was some kind of insult. "Don't tell me you're jealous of Lily. We've known each other since we were kids."

"Probably not the best defense with me," Janet countered. "I loved _Bradley_ since we were kids. From what I heard, she likes running to you whether or not Holden's in the picture."

Unsettled, Dusty bit back. "Problems in marriage aren't black and white. You should remember that." Standing up as he straightened his desk, he asked again, "Did you have a reason for coming downtown?"

"The contractor called. Something about the pipes. He wants to talk to us in person. I thought we could drive over together, and have dinner afterward."

"I need to talk to the legal department before I leave," Dusty replied.

Janet gave him a prissy nod of her head. "That's okay. I _just_ remembered some errands I should run."

"Meet you there in half an hour, forty-five minutes?"

"Sure. Say goodbye to Lily for me," she added, stalking out of the room.

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The hour and half ride to Eastlake Academy was an excercise in minimalist communication. Other than what he'd told Carly in the parking lot, Jack had no details. Carly tried calling JJ to no avail. And besides stopping at a drive thru over her protests for a sandwich and carton of milk for her, Jack's concentration seemed focused on the road.

He took her hand as they walked into the admistrative offices at Eastlake, and announced their arrival to a secretary. "We're Jack and Carly Snyder, JJ Snyder's parents. We're here to see the Dean."

"Dean Morgan will be with you shortly," she replied, showing them into a conference room.

"Where is my son?" Carly asked, barely able to contain how incensed she was.

"With the Dean," she answered, closing the door behind her.

Carly curled her fingers, as if to wrap them around someone's neck. "Ugh. Prententious, stuck up, mind games," she said, disgusted. "If I knew then, what I know now, I never would have allowed him to come here," she lamented as she began to pace the length of the room.

"Carly, you don't even know what's going on," Jack said calmly.

"Give me a break, Jack. They're wrong. JJ is too good a kid. He loves it here-God only knows why. He wouldn't do anything to mess up his last year here."

"The last time we were here, you loved it," Jack muttered under his breath.

"And now they can go to Hell on the first non-stop flight."

"Please don't say _that_ before we get some explanation. For _JJ's_ sake."

"Hey, Jack...don't try and manage _me_," Carly snapped, curling her lip. "You were ready to punch Chris Hughes for ordering a cheeseburger."

"I was not going to punch _him_," Jack denied vehemently. "I just-"

"Left your hungry pregnant wife sitting in Al's _before_ you could," Carly finished for him.

Jack shot her an angry glance. Voices in the outer office announced more arrivals. Similtaneously taking deep breaths, they stood together as the door swung open.

"Jack? Carly?" Paul Ryan's benignly befuddled face stepped into the room, followed shortly by his wife Emily.

"Is this where they warehouse the bad parents?" Em asked bluntly.

Carly rolled her eyes as Jack folded his arms defensively. "It seems so."

"Oh, please. How bad can it be?" Paul crossed the room, helping himself to one of the bottled waters sitting on a tray. "The school's still standing. No one's in the hospital. Kids will be kids. The suits make them sweat a little, we scowl and threaten to take away car keys and trust funds. It's all a part of our teenage angst. At least it was for me," he concluded. "And Emily. And I'm pretty sure it was for you too, Carly." Gazing at Jack's rigid stance, he couldn't help but add, "But I'd guess Jack crossed every 't', dotted every 'i' on every paper he ever wrote."

"Ryan, why don't you shove-"

"Hey, Carly-I hear congratulations are in order," Emily interrupted, stepping in between the men before Jack could finish his thought. "You married the big guy here," slapping Jack on the shoulder. "Again."

"Yep. Yes, I did," Carly reluctantly replied, coming to the same conclusion as Emily had-their husbands were better off in neutral corners. "Thank you. How is Alison liking Carbondale? Gwen mentioned she started a new job there," she returned, playing the small talk game as Jack cooled his heels.

"Loves it."

"Gwen convinced her to join a Hot Yoga class she discovered," Carly smiled tightly.

"I heard," Emily nodded. "You couldn't get me to do that. I enjoy a sauna, but I just want to lie there and melt in the heat. Not contort myself into a puzzle piece."

"How's Eliza?"

It was Jack's turn to roll his eyes, knowing Carly _hated_ trite discussions, especially since the friendship with Emily had glacial-ated over long ago. He would have to run into _Paul_ today of all days. Something about the guy irritated him. And it had been that way long before Meg got involved with him. Not just something-nearly _everything_. His sarcastic sense of entitlement, his clear disdain of the law, the way he mocked every situation.

Short of running into Craig, there was no one he'd rather see less.

A lanky, balding man with glasses entered unceremoniously, followed by JJ and Danny Stewart Hughes. It had been so long since Jack had seen him, he barely connected the tow-headed pre-schooler who'd been almost a daily presence in his home with the cocky teen standing beside his son.

"Ms. Stewart. Mr. and Mrs. Snyder. I'm Wade Morgan, Dean of Students at Eastlake Academy."

Jack relucantly shook his hand as Emily introduced Paul. Carly had shifted over to stand by JJ, throwing her arm around his shoulder.

"I'm sorry we had to meet today under these circumstances. But this matter demands a quick resolution."

"I'd appreciate some details," Jack broke in. "I was simply told JJ was being expelled."

"JJ has forced the issue," Morgan elaborated. "A few weeks ago, the head of our sciences department discovered anomalies that suggested grading curves were being manipulated in certain classes."

"Could you speak English, please?" Carly asked sharply.

"Cheating," Paul simplified for her. "Yes?" he asked the Dean.

"Correct. The longer this type of behavior goes on, the more likely it is pernicious rumors will taint the reputation of the school and students who took no part in any such wrongdoing."

"You're saying my son cheated?" Carly asked angrily.

"I assure you, Mrs. Snyder, we don't take these matters lightly. We have proof. On two separate occassions, tests were revised in hopes of pinpointing if and where a student might be gaining access to a copy of tests beforehand. We found JJ snuck into the biology lab on one of those days. In addition, there was a correlating rise in his Advanced Biology grade."

"Did you find any of these tests on him? In his room? Do you have him on videotape rifling through a garbage can? Hacking into a teacher's computer? Of course not," Carly answered, without waiting for a response. "Because this "proof" you say you have sounds like coincidence to me."

"Mrs. Snyder, we did in fact find a sample test with JJ's writing on it. When confronted, he denied knowing anything about it."

"And I still do!" JJ shouted, fists balled at his side.

"None of this explains how my son is involved," Emily pointed out.

"JJ has accused Daniel."

"Is it true, Daniel?" his mother asked.

"Of course not, Mom."

"We just returned from searching Daniel's room. We found nothing related to any academic improprieties. However, there are other matters, Mr. and Mrs. Ryan, that we need to discuss privately."

Carly stewed as Paul, Em and Daniel were shown out. "So, my son gets no privacy. Is he also expected to prove he's innocent?"

"Mrs. Snyder, Daniel and his parents were only included _because_ JJ accused Daniel."

"He's a nasty little creep!" JJ bristled. "Everyone knows it! He's had it out for me since last spring when I was voted captain of the la crosse team over him."

"What happens now?" Jack interceded, giving both Carly and JJ a moment to compose themselves.

"Because we have proof, we are suspending JJ for two weeks. At the end of that time, the matter will come before our board, and they will most likely recommend expulsion."

"So, it's _possible_ they could recommend not to?"

"If JJ admits his actions and names others who benefitted; then possibly. Before this incident, he was a model student, and very well thought of around campus. With several recommendations, the board might be persuaded to hand down a strict punishment short of explusion."

Seeing neither JJ or Carly were inclined to ask, Jack pressed. "What might such a punishment be?"

"Failing Advanced Biology for the semester, being ineligible for sports for the remainder of the term. Restriction to the dorms when not in class. And of course, it would go on his permanent record."

"Sounds like prison," Carly whispered.

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.

"Are you sure we're in the right spot?" Pushing her bangs aside with the back of a gloved hand, Miri sat back on her heels. "This is a huge pond."

Up to her elbows in the cold muck, Sage shrugged her shoulders. "Pretty sure. Mom said she was looking at the grove of lilacs, and there it is."

Miri had to admire the persistance. The water was cold, the mud thick and grimy, and the pond's edge choked with decaying plant life. "I think you might have to give up, Sage. We can't even know if we're looking in the right spot."

"It _has_ to be here," Sage insisted. "It has to be."

"I think your Mom would have found it the day she lost it, if she could have."

"My Dad convinced her to stop. But I know my Mom, she wants the compass back. She believes in it as much as I believe in my necklace."

"Is that what this is about? I knew you were upset before the recital."

"Mom gave me this big speech about how we should believe in ourselves. That's there's no such thing as magic. But that's not what she really feels-she just repeated what my Dad said to make her feel better the day they got married. If I had had my necklace, I wouldn't have messed up."

"What do you think is going to happen if you don't find your mother's compass?"

Sage thought of the answer, but wouldn't dare say it out loud. "I don't know."

The answer was written on Sage's face. Miri tread carefully as to not hurt the young girl's feelings. "Sage-don't you believe your parents love each other?"

"Yes," she answered earnestly.

"Then what are you worried about?"

"Ever since I was little, my Mom told me the story. How my Dad gave her the compass so she could always find her way back to him. So they could always find their way back to each other. And for a long time they couldn't."

"Doesn't that prove-"

"No, it doesn't prove anything. Look," Sage started impatiently, "last year, my dad went away. And we were all worried about him. My mom found out where he was, and the _first_ thing she did was find their compass to take with her. Then she found him and everything they felt came back. Everything worked out," she wrapped up. "What's wrong with believing in something _more_ than you can explain?"

"Well...nothing," Miri conceded. "I think you're setting yourself up for disappointment, though."

"I believe my Mom will get it back. She's meant to have it."

The stubborn look on Sage's face made Miri sigh. "If it means that much to you..." The girl nearly knocked Miri over, muddy gloves wrapping around her in a hug.

"I knew you'd understand!"

The embrace was so unexpected, it overwhelmed Miri. "But I don't think we'll have much time left today," she said gruffly, pulling away from Sage just a tiny bit.

"I think you're right, maybe we're not in the right spot. You stay here, I'm going to go down the shore a bit. Just fifteen more minutes, and I promise I'll give up for today."

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"I can't believe how much stuff you have here," Carly remarked, as she folded the last of JJ's shirts and packed it into his duffel bag. "Then again, it shouldn't. It's your home away from home. You need to have everything here that you do there."

"Mom. Enough." JJ stopped, hearing how rude and obnoxious he sounded. "This isn't my home. It's just where I go to school. At least it was."

"JJ, we can fight this-"

"How? I was here when they searched my room. I saw them find that note. It was in my stuff. Even if I could prove I didn't steal the tests, I don't think anyone would believe I didn't cheat. I joined a better study group," he explained defensively. "One that actually _studied_. I swear Mom. I knew it was a tough class when I chose it. Getting a B didn't upset me, even if it brings down my GPA. It's like getting an A. Everyone knows it."

Carly smiled. "Who would ever have thought _I_ would have a son who actually _chose_ the tough classes?"

"Lot of good it's done me," JJ said gloomily. "What am I going to do?"

The plea broke Carly's heart. "We'll figure it out, JJ. I promise."

Jack entered the dorm room, toting three boxes. "The RA finally found some cardboard boxes we could use."

"I was just telling JJ I can't believe how much stuff is here," Carly said.

"Lot of stuff to take home," Jack agreed. "The Dean said he would be in his office until six o'clock, if we needed to talk to him. About anything."

Glaring, JJ threw the rest of his cds into a box and held his hands out for the car keys. "I don't have anything to talk to Morgan about. Period."

"Okay then," Jack replied, fishing the keys out of his jacket pocket. JJ grappled with the unwieldly box, then snatched the keys as he stormed out the door.

"Really, Jack?"

"Really _what_, Carly?" he retorted. "Our son's in trouble here. I was just giving him an out."

Exasperated, Carly slung a bag over one shoulder. "Don't misunderstand, Jack. You are a caring man. A wonderful husband. A great father. I believe that with all my heart."

"There must be a pretty big but coming," Jack muttered.

"But...," Carly continued, "you're always a cop first. And this is one of those times I wish you could just _believe_."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Jack huffed.

"That it's abundantly clear you can't take JJ's word for it. We'll go home, and you'll pick JJ's statement apart, line by line, gesture by gesture and then _decide_ whether or not you believe our son."

"Not to state the obvious, but we just went through something similar with Parker, didn't we?"

Carly shook her head. "JJ is not Parker."

"I know that!"

"Then act like you do. 'Cause right now, I'm not sure JJ believes it."

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.

Exhausted and smelling funky, Miri unlocked her apartment door, throwing her mail on the small entable to the left and turning on the light. The two bedroom apartment was a little more than she could afford, but it's location more than made up for the incidentals she had to give up to meet the rent.

Sage had kept her end of the bargain. After another quarter hour searching for the mysterious compass, she'd left without a word of protest. It got dark earlier now, and she knew she couldn't explain being home much later than she would have, had she gone to practice. It turned out there was no need to explain anything to anyone-when Miri pulled into her driveway, the house was still dark. No one was home.

It had been tempting when Sage invited her in. She wanted to see what the house was like. To see if the exterior charm matched the inside. It had always fascinated her, to see how people's homes matched their personalities. She'd guess that Sage had grown up in a warm, friendly kind of house. One with toys strewn about, crayon marks on the kitchen table, and woodwork scarred from years of gentle abuse. Every mark coming with a story that grew with each retelling at holiday time.

She _liked_ Sage. She had since the moment they met at _Happy Feet_. It had pleasantly surprised her. She hadn't expected to. At least not immediately.

That's why Miri felt bad as she dug into her pocket. Walking into the kitchenette, she turned on the faucet, sliding the golden disk under thin stream of water. Liberated of mud and a gunky slime, it shined brightly as it caught the light. From what she could tell, the compass still worked, the slender needle twitching as she moved it to and fro.

"I think Sage is right," Miri said softly. "You show people where they're supposed to be."


	8. 8 Requiem

**8. Requiem**

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_There were two overwhelming sensations. His heart pounding in his chest and the hot suffocating air choking his lungs._

_Katie could be in here. He had to find her._

_Exposed against the door, sunlight at his back made it imperative to maintain cover. One wrong move and he'd be a sitting duck._

_Engulfed in the darkness, he heard a baby's cry. "Police! Put down your weapons! he shouted. Two shots whistled past his ear._

_He squeezed the trigger twice. He felt the gun recoil; smelled the sharp tang of gunpowder discharging into the air. Then silence._

_Katie appeared out of the darkness. "You've killed my husband! My son is never going to know his father!"_

_Henry stood by her, shaking his head. "Janet told you not to come. Who allows a civilian to tag along on a call?"_

_"I couldn't have shot Brad. Brad's not supposed to be here!" he insisted sickly._

_"I'm right here, Jack." Bathed in a white light so bright it hurt to look at him, Brad appeared. "You swore it would never happen again. When will you ever learn? Go ahead...see for yourself." Sternly, Brad pointed to a body lying at his feet._

_Compelled, Jack knelt down. Fighting the bile rising in his throat, he turned the body over._

_Parker's face stared back at him._

.

Bolting straight up from his bed, Jack gulped air into his lungs, fighting the urge to cry out. Disoriented, he ran his hand through his hair, waiting for the pain in his chest to ease.

It was just a dream. Check that. _Nightmare_.

He knew it would be hard. Firsts always were. He'd found himself drifting aimlessly this last week, thoughts of Brad popping into his head. What he'd think about the Cubs' pitching, the Bears defense, the latest Kim Kardashian hook up, and that squirrel "bicycling" video on youtube everyone had forwarded to him.

It was hard to believe it had been a year since Brad's death. At least in some ways. With the seismic shifts in his personal life, it could have been five. He was back in Milltown. Child on the way. Married to Carly. Jack could only imagine what his brother would have to say about _that_. It probably would have started with _are you crazy, man?_ and ended with _it's about time, bonehead._ That's just the way his brother _had been_. In the end, Brad wanted everyone to be happy.

But seeing Jacob, it was painfully clear how short a time it had been. How much his brother had missed. How much he would never experience.

Yet as painful as the last year had been, how could he wish it away? Here..._now_...meant everything to him.

The birthday party had been one long ordeal, starting with the awkward gathering that included Craig and Dusty, who hated each other on a good day. Throw in Margo, eternally trying to play referee between her siblings; the fact Carly and Rosanna were no longer speaking; Janet staring daggers at Lily; Holden being rubbed the wrong way simply being in the same room with Craig and Dusty...it seemed no one was comfortable.

And as everyone split off into their little groups, it struck him-everyone in the room had a sibling to talk with-or not. Margo was hustling between Craig and Katie over some imagined slight; Carly and Rosanna tried ignoring each other; Janet was in the corner whispering with Teri. Chris and Andy were snapping pictures of the birthday boy. Parker and Sage trying to lighten JJ's mood. Nat and Ethan making faces to get Jacob to smile for his pictures as Faith rolled her eyes. Johnny bragging to everyone about Lorenzo. Even Barbara and Henry showed up with Maddie in tow.

And they were all looking at him. Trying not to be too obvious in their pity, today of all days.

Maybe it was all in his head. Guilt and paranoia skewing his perception.

The breaking point came when Lily gathered the kids in a group picture to send to Emma. The girls, anticipating the tradition from multitudes of Snyder family birthdays, were checking themselves in the hallway mirror. The boys formed a semi-circle around Jacob's highchair as they waited.

It was like seeing a time lapse photograph-Jacob's face from age one to eighteen.

A sick feeling had come over him, and he bolted. He thought once he got outside into the fresh fall air, he could regain his balance. Instead, he found himself in the car, peeling away from the curb as Carly stood in the driveway.

Swinging his legs out from the covers, he leaned over the edge of the bed. It was only then he realized he was bathed in a cold sweat, chilled to the bone. Looking over his shoulder, he was grateful Carly was still sleeping peacefully. She needed rest.

Painstakingly making his way in the dark, he closed the door before turning on the bathroom light. The reflection that greeted him was grim-bloodshot eyes, ashen skin, hair plastered to his scalp. Turning the shower on, he stripped away the clammy t-shirt and boxers, and stepped under the spray.

Carly rolled over, vaguely aware she was alone in bed.

.

.

The bathroom was thick with steam. Jack felt the hot spray stinging his skin, but none of the heat permeated to his core. Giving up, he shut off the water, briskly running a towel from head to toe before wrapping it around his hips. Swiping through the middle of the fogged over mirror, he reevaluated his appearance. A llttle less scary, but not much.

Stealing back into the bedroom, he'd barely had a moment to sit down on the bed before he felt her eyes on him. "Sorry I woke you. Go back to sleep," he pleaded.

"Did you sleep at all?"

"Thought a shower would help. Think I'll go down and watch some tv."

The slump of his shoulders told her all she needed to know. Pushing herself up, she wrapped her arm around his waist, laying her cheek against his shoulder blade.

Jack smiled; a continuous, enduring lifeline. How many times had she reached out to him at a low point in his life? Too many times to count. He clasped her arm, feeling the warmth flow as he interlaced their fingers and hugged it closer to his body. "Sorry I took off."

His voice broke, and Carly's heart along with it. Wrapping her other arm around him she squeezed. "I wish I could tell you someday it won't hurt anymore." Carly kept her voice low and soothing, feeling some of the tension leave his body.

Jack brushed his lips against the back of her hand before continuing. "I would give anything to go back and relive that day. To not have stopped at Yo's. To know Brad was there. To wait another half second before I returned fire."

"It may not have changed anything, Jack."

"I know that." Turning, he rested his forehead on hers, cradling the back of her head. "But I wouldn't have the _slightest_ doubt. I wouldn't have _any_ guilt. I wouldn't feel like I stole my brother's life."

"No one thinks that."

"Why not? Here I am, a year later, happily married. Baby on the way. In a few months, I'm going to be holding our child. It's not fair!"

Tears shining in her eyes, she ran her fingers through his hair. "No, G-man, it isn't. It stinks. But it's not black and white, either or. We didn't come at their expense. You have to believe that. Otherwise it will eat away at you. _Stinkin' thinkin'_. It'll get you everytime."

"I don't want to repeat my mistakes. _Any_ of them," he added, swallowing hard as the image of Parker's lifeless body from his nightmare flashed through his mind.

"Then listen to me. Come back to bed."

Her light smile wrapped around him like a life jacket. _She always won. Thank God she's never given up on me._ "Maybe I'll just lie here until you go to sleep."

Carly let him go, scooting back to her half of the bed, and lying on the edge of her pillow. Naked, he followed her under the covers, meeting her in the middle of the bed. It brought back a memory from nearly two years before-lying here with her the night before his wedding, saying goodbye again, and how much he'd wanted to console her inconsolable pain. Jack cupped Carly's cheek, bringing his lips to hers. "Promise me there's nothing left unsaid between us."

"We've said everything from _I love you_ to _I wish I didn't._ Holding back isn't our problem."

"Brad's last words to me were "make sure she's okay". All he could think about was making sure she wasn't scared."

"I think that's understandable-he knew she'd given birth."

"Then I think-if it had gone the other way. If _I_ had been lying there. _If_ I had died a year ago...what..._would_ you have known how much I loved you?"

"_Shhh-shhh_" she mumbled between kisses, pressing her body to his. "I always knew, Jack. _Always_."

Jack took possession of her mouth, letting all of the warring emotions pour out of him as her lips parted and he plundered the sweetness within. Carly arched against him as he stroked her tongue with his, letting him feel the way her heart thudded in her chest at his touch. A soft moan came from the back of her throat as she pulled him on top of her, digging her nails into his back as his full weight pinned her to the bed.

Carly flushed hotly as he settled in between her thighs, feeling the searing length of his shaft so close to her slick channel. She held her breath has his hand slid under the hem of the oversized nightshirt she wore. It settled over her hip, leveraging her against him as he slowly rocked against her, teasing her with a preview of things to come.

Savoring the heat that now permeated his bones, Jack sought out the pounding pulse at her neck, flicking his tongue along the collarbone to her nape. Carly tilted her head, an invitation to The Spot; the sensitive patch they'd discovered long ago sent a welcome shudder of desire through both of them. He took full advantage of it now, throwing gas on their already devouring need.

Carly quivered under him, pure want coiling tightly at her core. She shut her eyes, riding the waves of exhilartion coursing through her body. The ache at her core was mercilessly manipulated, ignored as Jack explored the rest of her body. He palmed her breasts through the thin layer of silk that clung to them, circling her already hardened nipples with his thumb until they seemed too painful to bear. Just at the point she was ready to sob, the material slid away and his mouth closed over the tip of her right breast, scraping his tongue over it as he suckled her flesh. Torment became pleasure as he moved from peak to peak, dividing his attentions, nipping at one while caressing the other.

Impatient, Carly turned up the heat, letting one hand steal between them, stroking the thick length burrowed into her thigh. She knew she'd gotten his attention by the hitch in his breath and the break in his rhythmn. It pulsed in her hand as she encircled it, steadily pumping as she swept her hand along the breath and scope of his erection. It brought a smile to her lips as Jack drove his hips against it, relishing the feel.

Groaning, Jack returned to ravage her mouth, driving his tongue deep inside to duel with hers. It became a battle. One with a common goal, but a growing impatience to give in to the bliss that was on the verge of overwhelming them. Breathless, Jack dragged himself away again, trailing kisses down the length of her body. He felt Carly stiffen as he sank lower, anticipating every caress. She spiraled up when he found her core, wrapping his hands around her thighs as he teased the dampness with his tongue.

Carly buried her hands in his hair, angling them both to the very center of her pleasure. Her hips stuttered against his mouth, seeking the fulfillment only he could provide. Jack scraped the sensitized bud with his tongue, eliciting a primitive moan from her. He gently loosened her hands from his head, grasping one in his and letting the other knot in a tangle of sheets by her side. Slipping a finger inside, he pistoned into her underbelly as he suckled the swollen node, setting off a series of convulsions that sent Carly over the edge, electrifying her body as it spiraled out of control.

Jack was still rock hard as eased up her slight frame, loving the way she anchored herself to him in the midst of her climax. He hovered over her, grinning boyishly when she locked eyes with him, arching up to kiss him gratefully. With the slightest touch, he acquiesed, bringing her up and sinking against the mattress as she straddled him.

She shrugged the clinging nightwear from her shoulders, letting it fall to the floor carelessly. Leaning forward, she kissed him again, crushing her breasts against his hard chest as she caressed his face. Then much like he had, Carly teased and tormented him, kissing, biting, licking and grinding against him until she thought he would explode.

As much as she wanted to sink her lips around his shaft, she drew back from it, barely brushing the swollen head with her thumb before rising up to guide him inside her, finally embedding it's engorged length in her own heated depths.

"Damn," Jack growled primitively, arching his hips up as she sank around him.

Carly chuckled huskily, rotating her hips counterclockwise and delighting as his eyes rolled back into his head. Taking her time, she focused on long, smooth strokes until Jack's eyes focused on her again.

Pushing himself up, Jack wrapped an arm around her back, flattening her body against him. Their sweat mingled together, exertion flushing their cheeks a deep pink. Eyes riveted, they kissed, then rocked to a steamy cadence with a final burst. Wicked tremors echoed through them, finally cresting with a sultry release in Carly's womb.

They clung to each other, blocking out everything but the blissful waves that washed through them and the feel of their bodies melted together.

Slowly, they eased back together, reclaiming some of their sanity and easing back to stretch out on the bed. Jack kissed the top of her head, running his hands down her back as she relaxed on top of him. Carly kissed his still damp chest as she listened to his heartbeat slowly calming beneath her.

Still relishing the feel of him inside her, she stayed where she was, propping her chin on his chest to smile at him. He pressed his cheek against her hand when she brought it up to smooth his hair, and offered a smokey kiss in return. When he blushed and turned away, Carly laid a finger along his jaw and swiveled his head back. "What?" she asked, her voice still ragged and low.

"I was just remembering."

"I'll take that as a good sign," she said, raising her eyes suggestively. "Anything in particular I should file under "favorites"?"

A burst of laughter came from him before he kissed her lightly. "_Everything_," he uttered contentedly, playfully squeezing her backside.

"But that wasn't what you were thinking," she concluded, reading his face.

Conceding the point, Jack shook his head. He brushed her hair off her face, tucking long strands behind both her ears. "Remember our first kiss?"

"How could I forget? It took forever to finally get it out of you. And believe me, if the cabin hadn't been overflowing, I would have locked the door and kept you to myself for the next week."

"Really?"

"Believe it, G-man," she answered dryly.

"Well, I'm glad you didn't."

Snorting, Carly expressed clear doubt at that claim.

"I am." Gazing at her, Jack clearly recalled the moment-how hot and still the night had been, the spicy fragrance from the white yarrow surrounding the cabin filling the air. Her hair had been shorter than his then, with eyes bluer than the clear Montana sky. She had been and still was, the most beautiful woman he'd ever seen.

He ran his thumb over her full lower lip. "I know I said a lot tonight...this last year about wanting to change things. Events. But I don't want you to doubt...I wouldn't change a moment I've had with you. Good, bad or ugly. It's the reason I'm still standing. Why I can get up every morning and live with the fact the bullet that killed Brad came from my gun."

"Jack-"

"No...let me say it. I've been quick to blame. Pull away. Let me give credit where credit is due. I've learned what it means to be resilient watching you. I meant it when I said you pulled me back. I don't know anyone else who could have walked me out of that Hell the way you did. You've always dragged me into the present. From the moment you threw Molly in my face in Montana and dared me to prove otherwise. _That's_ why I remembered our kiss. _That_ one moment made everything in our life possible. _You_ are my miracle."


	9. 9 Friends and Saboteurs

**9. Friends and Saboteurs**

**.**

**.**

**.**

"Good morning, Mr. Montgomery."

"Good morning." Craig didn't bother to look at the server who wheeled his breakfast cart into the suite. The same moron had delivered it every day this week. He would be replaced by another moron next week. They were nameless, faceless flunkies; interchangeable cogs in the well-oiled machinery of his life.

Signing the bill and dismissing the insignificant, he steeled himself before unveiling his breakfast. For the past five mornings, he'd had oatmeal. A misfire in his ordered life.

He'd assumed enlightening Rosanna and creating a certain distance between her and Carly would facilitate a reconciliation. And in some ways it had. Rosanna had moved in, unpacked and stepped into the role of default stepmother easily. She already knew more about Johnny's friends and school than he did. She took him to play dates and signed him up for a weekly art class. Johnny seemed to thrive on her attention.

In fact, he could argue she spent more time with his son than him.

Not that it mattered. It played into his hands. He fully intended to be married by Thanksgiving. Johnny needed a mother. He needed a wife. Only his stupidity and lust had kept them from being married last winter. The sooner that mistake was corrected, the sooner they would all be settled and happy.

Happy was not how he'd describe Rosanna now. She'd sulked since learning of Carly's pregnancy. Throughout Jacob's party, she'd tried to stay distant and detached, but she was clearly hurt Carly's attention never focused on her. After Jack's dramatic exit, the situation deteriorated as Carly sought out Lily for some hushed corner conversation before departing early with the kids herself.

Which lead him back to the prospect of a sixth morning of oatmeal. Rosanna's distraction somehow manifested itself in repeating the same breakfast order. One day of it was tolerable. Days two and three he swallowed for Johnny's sake. By day four, he'd pointedly asked Rosanna to order a Denver omlette with whole wheat toast (his concession to being health conscience.). His fifth bowl of oatmeal nearly got thrown out the window.

As he apprehensively lifted the lid from his room service tray, the unmistakeable aroma of oatmeal again permeated the air.

Somehow, _some_ way, he had to shake Rosanna out of this malaise.

Before he woke up smothered in brown sugar and drowning in milk.

.

.

.

"I suppose you're too old to want peanut butter on those," Henry observed, placing a stack of waffles in front of his baby sister. Her appearance on his doorstep had been a welcome surprise, if completely unexpected. Barbara had fussed over her new sister-in-law awkwardly at first; insisting that Maddie address her as "Barbara" and stay in the suite adjoining theirs. But the discussion soon turned to Will, Gwen and Hallie, easing the discomfort a bit.

"I haven't put peanut butter on waffles since I was like three." Sitting at the counter at Al's, Maddie made a half-hearted attempt at eating, only to push syrup drenched squares around her plate. "How did you remember that anyway?"

"It's hard to forget living above a waffle house, paying off the busboys for the leftovers. We ate them for breakfast, lunch and dinner for an entire year. It got old quick. But you, my little Maddie-Monkey, clapped happily every night when I came home loaded down with them. I started putting peanut butter on them so we could sit in front of the tv."

"I suppose I remind you of a three year old, just showing up on your door like I did," Maddie replied self-consciously.

"It was a surprise."

"I'm sure Barbara was thrilled. By the way, it still freaks me out a little that you're married to Will's mom."

"Barbara _was_ thrilled and _I'm_ still a little freaked out at being married. _Happily_ married anyway."

"It was nice seeing Katie and Jacob yesterday. Even with the weird vibe going on. I'm glad you've made up. Brad would be happy that you're still friends."

"Yes, yes he would-"

"Do you think Chris-"

"Madeline _Elizabeth_ Coleman, that's enough stalling!" Henry ordered, concern etched on his face. "I let it go yesterday when you showed up out of the blue, _in the middle of your semester_. _What_ is going on?"

"I dropped out."

"Ha-ha. Very funny. My brainiac sister is leaving Wesleyan, only the college she dreamed about going to forever. The only one she applied to."

"It's not what I thought it was," she whispered apologetically. "It's great-but I'm miserable there."

"Does this have anything to do with Casey? Or that punk Hunter McWho'sit?"

"No, not really," she shrugged. "It's not like I'm pining after Casey. _Anymore_," she added quickly. "And Hunter's-well, he's Hunter. Socially clumsy and awkwardly linear, but nice. We're fine. We agreed to be friends. Nothing more. I just came to the conclusion Film Studies isn't for me. I took those semesters off, and the credits from Oakdale U didn't transfer like I thought they would." Putting her fork down, she looked up at him. "It's not the _middle_ of my semester. I never went back."

Shocked, Henry grabbed the bar towel from his shoulder and slapped it on the counter. "Are you freakin' kidding me?"

"It's my life!" Maddie responded hotly.

"But dropping out?"

"What should I have done? Stayed when I don't belong there? Piled up more debt to get a degree I'm never going to use?"

"Well, at least you'd have something to point at," he huffed. Seeing he was getting nowhere with that tack, he asked a more pertinent question. "If you're Ms. Independent...what are you doing showing up on my doorstep?"

"I need a _small loan_," she answered reluctantly.

.

.

.

Carly studied Lily contritely from her doorway. "I promised to call you last night, didn't I?"

"You did," Lily confirmed as Carly invited her inside. "How's Jack?"

Smiling tightly, Carly shrugged her shoulders. "As okay as anyone could be. You know Jack, keeping it all "under control" the way he does. When he blows, he blows big-like he did at Chris the other day."

"Chris? Chris Hughes?"

"It wasn't serious," Carly assured her. "And thank you for keeping me from flying after him. I'm too protective sometimes. I let him come to me when he was ready. I wasn't worried he would leave town," Carly clarified. "But I'm not sure he would have seen it that way."

"The Snyder Pride is a powerful thing, isn't it? Can't worry about them. They'd rather chew off an arm before admitting they need anyone or anything."

"Annoying, isn't it?"

"Very!" Lily agreed, following Carly into the kitchen, where she accepted a cup of decaffeinated coffee. "Where is Jack?"

"Where else? The precinct." Her tone confirmed she was not happy about it. "He wouldn't consider staying home."

"Bye, Mom," JJ called out, slamming out the front door.

"Another country heard from," Carly said sardonically, taking a sip from her mug.

"That face looks familiar," Lily sympathized. "Raising them never gets easier."

"No it doesn't. And in true Snyder style, he doesn't want to talk. I'm trying to be patient with him. Though I'm not sure how long this _hands off_ approach is going to last." Leaning against the counter, Carly took in one deep breath, exhaling slowly. "Enough about me. You were saying last night you wanted to talk to me."

"Yes," Lily smiled.

"Have you talked to Emma?" Carly went on, heedless of her invitation to let Lily talk. "Do you think she'll be back for Thanksgiving? I can't believe she's been gone for this long. She loves the fall-harvesting, putting up her preserves. It must be strange for her not being here now." Last Thanksgiving flashed through her mind; having Emma thank her for bringing Jack home, only to flee at seeing Janet cling to him like a starving bloodsucker. The memory still stung, emotion outweighing reason for a split second.

"I haven't talked to her for a couple of days," Lily replied, not surprised Carly was still directing the conversation. "I've been really busy at work."

"What's going on?"

"Well...I suppose there's no harm in telling you. It'll be public soon enough," Lily slyly started. "Barbara's selling off B.R.O. WorldWide's in the process of buying it, right down to the last button."

Carly's eyes widened in shock. "Really?"

"Yep."

"That's..." Carly's head spun a little, remembering all the time she'd envied Barbara's position in the fashion industry. "Good for her. I always thought you'd have to wheel her out of there in a straight jacket or a body bag, but obviously I was wrong."

"By the looks of it, she's very happy with Henry. They want to run Metro together, from what I understand."

"Talk about irony. I could barely get Henry's attention when we owned it."

"There are some fringe benefits to marriage," Lily observed drolly. "Or disadvantages. I'm not sure how one would deal with Henry all day, every day."

"You got a point there. Henry's best in small doses," Carly agreed, shaking her head. "Funny the way our lives overlap sometimes."

"Meaning...?" Lily left the question open-ended, hoping Carly's natural curiosity would start some wheels turning and make Dusty's offer a bit more tantalizing.

"Well, just...I _owned_ Metro, and now they do. Hal. Craig. Julia. _James_," she added, in full venom. "I spent years trying to emulate her. And here were are now, two happily married ladies."

"It's hard to imagine Barbara being happy _not_ designing."

Carly dumped the rest of her coffee down the sink, rinsing it with a splash from the faucet. "Giving up must be easier than having it burned out from underneath you," she muttered under her breath.

"What?"

"Nothing. Give Dusty my congratulations. It's quite a coup."

"You could do that yourself," Lily countered.

"Not with Janet _anywhere_ around, thank you very much," Carly erupted, a deep belly laugh filling the room.

"You may have a point. She acted very weird the other day when she found me in Dusty's office."

Carly raised her eyebrows. "Were _you_...?"

"Was I _what_?" Lily sputtered.

"You're an adult. I shouldn't have to spell it out!" Carly mocked.

"Carly Snyder!"

"Well, you're not gettin' any anywhere else. _I_ sure wouldn't blame Dusty. And you two go way, _way_ back."

"You don't have to make it sound like the Stone Age," Lily scolded.

"So what exactly did the Red Scourge do? Breath fire? You don't look singed," Carly observed, inspecting her up and down.

"She only got to the huffing stage before I excused myself. The woman is more than a little insecure."

"Tell me something I don't know." Wrinkling her nose, Carly tilted her head. "Can we change the subject? Janet gives me indigestion."

"On top of morning sickness?" Lily sympathized.

"Oh, that's over with. Amazing how fast your energy comes back when you're not upchucking half the day. So much so, I'm thinking of starting the nursery."

"Where are you going to squeeze that in in this old house?"

"I thought I'd convert that little cubbyhole between Sage's room and the guest room."

"Your office?"

"Well, it's not really an office. Jack's never used it. It's mostly just a catch all for stuff," Carly reasoned. "I already have it all sketched out," she blurted, before the question could go further. Lily followed her into the living room, as she quickly sorted through a pile to find her design pad. "I think this is it." Pulling one from the bottom of the stack, Carly started flipping through it.

"That's gorgeous!" Lily exclaimed, halting the stream of pages Carly was buzzing through. "I'd forgotten how talented you are," she mused, admiring the evening dress.

Carly recognized it immediately, it was a rough sketch of the dress she'd planned to wear at Monte Carlo's first showing. The final sketch had burned up with the rest of the line, thanks to Craig. Her throat dried up, and it took her a moment to be able to speak. "Thanks."

"This is nice too," Lily went on, slowly flipping through more outlines. It was obvious Carly still loved to design. "You should start working again."

"Yes, between hockey, ballet and bottles, I'll just whip out my sketch pad and conjure up a spring line," Carly scoffed uncomfortably. Of all the rotten things Craig had ever done, barbecuing all her hard work was number two on the list. Stealing Parker's trust would always be at the top.

"Yours was the first name Dusty brought up."

.

.

.

_thud...thud thud...thud-thud-thud_

The sequence repeated twice over before Jack stepped away from the bag, sweat dripping from his brow. Margo shook her head, watching from the balcony of the OPD gym. She had taken him aside a week ago when the schedule came out, asking if he felt comfortable working the anniversary of Brad's death. His answer was a stubborn denial, no special favors needed. Not that she'd expected any less.

Last night when he'd left Jacob's party abruptly, she'd been determined to send Jack home today as soon as reasonably possible. A morning meeting at the Mayor's office had interfered with that plan. Quiet inquires about his mood had assured her things had run capably, if not as smoothly as usually.

"Jack!"

Hearing his name, Jack looked up to see the Chief of Detectives coming toward him. Shrugging off his boxing gloves, he started unwrapping his hands, seeing his lunch period was just about over anyway. "What can I do for you, Margo?" he asked.

"I feel like I should be asking you that."

"No need," Jack replied bluntly. "Quiet morning. Two minor traffic calls. An attempted robbery at the Gas 'N Go on Highway Nine. Still waiting on the warrant in the Treader case."

"Looks like everything's under control-"

"Yeah, _it is_." The surly tone betrayed his edginess. "I don't need to be checked up on. And don't tell me you didn't have eyes on me this morning. It felt like the entire squad had me under a microscope."

"They know today's a hard day for you."

"I know they mean well," Jack conceded. "But it's like they're waiting for me to snap."

"You could have easily side-stepped the issue and taken the day off."

"I'm barely back from my honeymoon. I won't have people whispering behind my back, wondering if I'm reliable _all_ of the time or just part of it."

"I don't doubt you, Jack. I'm concerned. We're all _concerned_." Sensing him about to snap out another denial, Margo held a hand up to concede, her point made. "The party was nice. Well, as nice as it could have been with Craig there."

Jack let out an involuntary laugh. "What did he do now?" he asked, eager to leave the subject of today behind. Even if it meant talking about Craig.

"Oh nothing. Just suggested to Katie she should hire a tutor for Jacob."

"Huh? The kid's a year old."

"I think his exact words were..."with Brad's lack of mental acumen, you shouldn't take any chances. Bring a professional in."

Jack shook his head for a moment. "Your brother really is an ass, you know that? I'm surprised Katie didn't lay him out."

"She wanted to. I spent most of my time keeping them in neutral corners."

Tentative chuckles quickly gathered steam, becoming peals of laughter that left him breathless. Looking into Margo's puzzled expression only made the situation worse, bringing tears streaming down his cheeks. "I'm not cracking up, I swear," he said between gasps. "I just pictured it-Katie making mincemeat out of Craig, complete with "zing!" "zowhie!" and "blam!" like they did on _Batman_. The tv series, not the movies."

"I'm old enough to remember, Jack," Margo admitted grudgingly.

"It just struck me as funny."

Margo shook her head. "At least Craig's monumental ego is good for something. It made you laugh today."

.

.

.

After spending a couple of hours wandering around the mall, JJ ducked into Java, ordering a danish and large hot cocoa. Choosing a seat in the corner, away from the customer traffic, he grabbed a recent issue of _Sports Illustrated_ to page through.

"Well, if it isn't Parker's little brother."

JJ looked up to see Daniel Hughes sneering at him. "_Danny_." JJ used the shortened nickname he knew Daniel hated. "Why don't you get lost? Or are you?"

"What's it like getting kicked out? I bet Jack is furious with you."

JJ had no doubt that was true. He could sense the uneasiness in the house, which is why he'd taken off this morning before his mother could corner and smother him with support. But he wasn't about to give Daniel the satisfaction. "Bullshit. My dad knows I wouldn't cheat. I don't need to." Furious at the continued sneer on Hughes' face, he added, "and when I prove you set me up, you'll be the one with some explaining to do."

"You crack me up. There's nothing to prove. You saw them search my dorm room. The only thing they found was porn. And within five minutes, Paul was opening his wallet to "donate" a whole new media arts department and smooth over my objectifying women everywhere. Face it, JJ...you got nothing. And you never will. I'm bulletproof.


End file.
